The House of the Raging Bull
by Arcanehex69
Summary: Hyoudou Issei had only one dream. To surpass his parents, uphold his family name. To master a combat style of his own. To become the best fighter the world has ever known. What happens when an incident takes away his dreams and forces a life of servitude on him? Join Ise on his fight against odds he has never faced before. AU. Extreme OOC. Non-perverted, hardworking, strong Issei.
1. Hero

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 1

HERO

"Jab, cross, left hook, cross! Jab, cross, left hook, right hook! 1-2-3-2, 1-2-3-4, that's it! Watch your footing, not too sideways. That's better. 1-2-3-2, 1-2-3-4…...Keep at it!" She instructed as she held the punching bag. The guy punching was still a rookie, but he had potential.

"Jamie, take over will ya?" She hollered over the music playing in the gym.

"Sure, Cassie" He gave her a smile. "Better go find your son. He's gonna be late for his first day."

"He's always late." She replied exasperatedly as she walked off to find her son.

As she neared the almost isolated room at the back of the gym, she heard a different song playing.

 _Who's gonna fight for what's right_

 **Jab, cross, left hook, cross!** _  
Who's gonna help us survive_

 **Jab, cross, left hook, right hook!** _  
We're in the fight of our lives  
(And we're not ready to die)_

Who's gonna fight for the weak

 **Jab, cross, left hook, right uppercut!** _  
Who's gonna make 'em believe_

 **Jab, cross, left uppercut, cross!** _  
I've got a hero (I've got a hero)  
Livin' in me_

I've gotta fight for what's right

 **Jab, cross, left uppercut, right uppercut!** _  
Today I'm speaking my mind_

 **Jab, right hook, jab, cross!** _  
And if it kills me tonight  
(I will be ready to die)_

"1-2-3-2, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-6, 1-2-5-2, 1-2-5-6, 1-4-1-2….." She counted in a whisper as she watched him execute all the combos relentlessly with finesse. The speed and strength behind those punches was truly amazing to her, even after all this time. He was just like his father. She smiled as she watched him perform a flawless reverse tornado kick. He always bore a heavy burden on his shoulders, wanting to not only uphold the family name but also to surpass both her and Daichi, her deceased husband. His dream was to master a combat style unique to himself, to be the best of them all. She deeply wished it would come true.

She shook herself from her reverie as the song finished. "Honey, time for school." She called softly.

"Be right out, ma." He replied as he kept pounding the bag. She furrowed her brow in annoyance.

"You got thirty minutes left. And if you're late this time….." She warned.

"Okay, okay. I'll go. Just let me get ready." He replied as he ran for the shower. She sighed. He was always like that. Running off to school at the last moment and shooting right out after the bell rang. Barely made any friends at all, as he trained or studied all the time. She was not worried at first, as he got satisfactory grades. But this drive of his was not good.

That's why she was sending him to Kouh Academy for his second year, an all girls private school turned co-ed recently. Not the greatest idea, she knew. But if being around girls opened him up a bit more…

"Bye ma!" He waved as he ran out.

"Take care of yourself. And don't be late!" She waved back with a small smile.

{}{}{}

 _Oh man, I'll be late. And on first day too. Just great._ He thought as he ran.

 _Ma's gonna kill me._ He groaned as he saw only five minutes left on his watch. "Oh hang it all! I'll just skip over." He said as he came near the corner. Instead of going around, he turned sharply to the wall and ran. As he neared it, he suddenly leaped up high, doing a front flip and landing inside a house. He didn't pause but kept on going. As he neared another wall he leaped twice in row, landing on the wall first and then on the rooftop of another house. He kept on skipping and flipping and leaping as he crossed rooftops, latched on to holds of buildings and diving to ground right before grabbing onto a branch or ledge. After three minutes of this madness, he finally landed and broke out into a run as the school came into view. Two minutes later the bell rang, and Ise was in.

 _That was close._ He thought as he huffed.

{}{}{}

"Class, we have a new student with us this year." The teacher announced. "Please introduce yourself." She said as she turned to him. He nodded and wrote his name down on the blackboard, in both Japanese and English. He then turned to the class, few of whom looked wide-eyed at the blackboard.

"Hello, my name is Hyoudou Issei. My family calls me Ise though. Pleased to meet you all." He said as he bowed politely to the class.

The ones with the wide-eyes goggled at him while a few more looked like they were trying to remember something important. Until…...

"Eh?!"

"Hyoudou?"

"NO WAY!"

"For real?"

The class broke out into fierce whispers, the ones who recognized the name pointing at him till the teacher told them all to calm down. "Now, if any of you have any questions for Mr. Hyoudou here, you may ask."

The class erupted with noise as almost everyone wanted to ask him a question.

"Are you really from the House of the Raging Bull?" A girl wearing glasses asked from the front.

"Are you the son of Hyoudou Daichi and Cassandra?"

"Is it true that you have won the Young Dragon Championship last year?" A rather handsome blonde boy from the middle asked.

"Did your father really break a tiger's skull with a single punch?"

"Is the newly opened Raging Bull Gym owned by your mother?"

"Damn, your mother is one hot thing! Can I come into your house and check out-I mean see her?" A guy from the back yelled. Issei scowled as the class sweat-dropped at his words.

"To answer all your questions," Ise began. "Yes, I am from the House of the Raging Bull, once master trainers and fighters of our nation." He said with pride in his voice. "Yes, my mother is Cassandra Hyoudou, former UFC bantamweight champion. My father is Hyoudou Daichi, the Iron Bull. However, I don't recall him punching a tiger in the face, ever." He had everybody laughing at that. "I did win the championship last year. Finally, we own the gym. It specializes in training fighters or athletes. One of my father's last wishes." He finished. _A perfect mix of both your_ _s_ _and ma's heritage. Well thought, dad._

"Hey! You didn't answer my question!" The guy from the back complained.

"That is enough Matsuda. Issei, please take a seat." The teacher said as Ise sat down next the blonde guy.

 _Let's hope the rest of the class doesn't go like this._ He sighed as the teacher began his lecture.

{}{}{}

 _Oh well, at least it wasn't any worse._ Ise thought as he walked back to his home. His school day wasn't that bad. Other than the infamous perverted duo trying to get an autographed photo of his mother, it was okay. Like he had expected, quite a few recognized who he was just by his name. Of course, a fighter would never gain the same level of fame as a singer, but by the day had passed rumors and stories about his family was beginning to spread. Those from the kendo club and martial arts club stopped their training and stared at him when he was passing them. He scowled as he remembered something.

 _They knew me because of my parents. Not for me._ He gritted his teeth but stopped himself from raging instantly. He never felt anything but love from both his parents, and he loved dearly them too. What he hated was that people constantly kept judging him by the achievements of his parents.

" _Your dad was way better than this you know?"_

" _If you are weak like this, how can you expect to live up to your father's name?"_

" _Your mother is Cassie? Wow, you look way too skinny for her son!"_

They tried to shield him from this of course but it just wasn't possible. That's why he kept pushing himself. He learned the Raging Bull's Rampage style from his father that his family held so sacred. He learned his mother's grace and deadly speed. But in the end, he refused to use either style for anything but practice.

 _One day, I'll become the best fighter in the world. And I'll do it with a style of my own._

His thoughts were broken as he suddenly heard malicious laughter from dark alley he left behind. He stopped as his ears picked up four, no five voices.

"Oy, Ray! Check this girl out! She got crimson hair, and look at that body. Damn!"

"Tch, I'm more into the other one. I get her first."

"No can do Ken, I get the red first. I spotted them."

"No, I get it first!" Another whined.

"Why don't we let the ladies decide?" A calm voice said, but Issei could hear the mockery and lust dripping from it.

Wasting no more time, he leaped onto the wall next to him then onto a roof. He ran and grabbed a hold on the next building, climbing rapidly. Just as he reached the top, he saw them advancing on the two girls. Both were wearing Kouh academy uniforms.

He let himself fall off the roof. As he descended, his legs smashed on the first guy's shoulders, making a sick crunching sound as the guy got knocked out from the hit. He crouched low as he landed over the guy's body and made a low kick at two others feet. As they fell, Issei shot out his hands in a palm strike position, impacting their nose and breaking it first. Almost instantly, he rotated his palms and thrust at their back, accelerating their fall. He leaped off to the next target using the thrust's power and his legs, making a fist with his right and smashing it on his nose, hurling him backwards and bonking his head as he landed. He crouched and swung his left leg at the last one's calves. It was a weak one, but he was so surprised that Ise's attack made his legs give away. As he fell, Ise broke the man's nose with a strike, but this time didn't shove him to the floor. Instead, he grabbed his right hand and struck his elbow from behind with brute force with his own. A sick crunch was heard.

"Aaaaaagrh!" The guy managed to yell out before Ise pressed a point on the back of his neck harshly, making him pass out from pain. He dropped the man and relaxed his stance.

The whole thing happened just under a minute.

Ise looked at the girls, checking for injuries of any sort. They looked fine, though they had stunned looks on their faces. Issei couldn't help but notice both girls were very beautiful.

He coughed loudly to get their attention. "You girls okay?"

"Y-yeah. We're fine." The crimson haired one manged to say.

"Good. Don't hang around here any longer. And take care okay?" He said as he ran over to his house. He was getting late for practice. _They'd just have to make do on their own. No time for playing knight in shining armor._

"Wait!" She yelled.

"Buchou, he's gone." The black-haired girl stated.

"He was wearing Kouh Academy uniform. Who was that, Akeno?" She asked.

"I believe it was a new second year student, Hyoudou Issei."

"He's pretty strong."

"Well, his family is quite famous for their fighting style. I heard his mother was quite the fighter as well. My, Buchou are you interested in him by chance?" Akeno asked as she smiled.

"Maybe. Let's just watch him for now. Besides, we never got the chance to say thank you, did we?" The crimson haired one said as she walked away.

"As you wish. Before we go, I should wipe their minds. don't want these idiots to find us again." Akeno said as she waved with her hand. A flash of red later, they were gone.

{}{}{}

"Ma, I'm home." Ise announced as he panted and huffed.

"You know Ise honey, you can just take a walk back. No need to be in such a hurry all the time." Cassie smiled at her son.

"I have to train." He answered as he rushed past her.

"How was school?" she asked.

"It was fine, ma. And don't make that face, I meant it when I said it was okay. Didn't make any friends like you hoped though." He answered as he stopped to talk with her.

"Ise, how can you expect..." She was stopped mid rant as he raised his hands.

"It takes time, ma. Besides, I did say that I liked this school didn't I? So, just give it time." He replied.

"Okay" She smiled. "It was perfectly normal, nothing to mention?"

"It was." He said and then snickered. "There were two perverts who kept bugging me for your photo though. Said you were hot as hell." He conveniently forgot to mention the incident after school. She didn't need to worry any more than she did already.

"Let me get this straight." She said slowly. "Two perverted boys my son's age told my son that his mother was hot as hell while demanding a photo of me."

"Yes." He burst out laughing seeing her face.

"Thanks for the ego boost!" She said in a dry, slightly disgusted tone.

"Anyways, ma. I got to run now." Ise said a he dashed in his room as his mother sighed in exasperation.

{}{}{}

The next day went as normally as possible. Ise was packing his things as the bell rang. He lowered to check if he was leaving something behind when he heard all movements stop. Somehow, he felt that he was the cause of it. As he slowly got up, fiery crimson and lustrous black came into view.

The two girls he saved last day.

"H-Hello." He said, a bit unnerved that they had found him.

The duo simply bowed deeply in response, shocking everyone present. A moment later the crimson haired girl spoke in a regal tone.

"Hyoudou Issei. Yesterday, you saved both mine and my friend Akeno's lives. For that, thank you."

"It was the right thing to do." He responded, still too shocked at their behavior.

"Regardless, it was a brave, selfless act that saved our lives." She paused. "My name is Rias Gremory. I am a third year and also the President of the Occult Research Club." She bowed again.

"And my name is Akeno Himejima. Also a third year and a member of the Occult research club." The black haired beauty beside her bowed as well.

He did not want to be rude to them. From the expressions around him, he figured them to be very important figures. He bowed in return. "Please call me Ise. A pleasure to meet you."

"Ara, such well behavior. You must be quite the gentleman." Akeno giggled.

He had no response to that. So he merely stood there and blushed, making her giggle more in response.

"Since I can see it's futile to make you accept anything in return, how about I offer you my friendship?" Rias said, as she extended her hand.

"Sure thing, senpai." He chocked out a moment later as he shook it. _Friends?_

"Now don't forget me Ise-kun." Akeno giggled at his gobsmacked face.

That was the only mention worthy event of his day. Other than a new female transfer student called Yuuma Amano who sat beside him for the day. But he could care less about that.

 _Well, now I can tell ma that I may have made a couple of friends._

* * *

Character List

Hyoudou Daichi (Ise's father. Also know as the 'Iron Bull' for his power and prowess. Deceased.)

Cassandra Hyoudou (Ise's mother, former UFC Bantamweight champion, now the owner of the Raging Bull Gym in Kuoh.)

Terms or Concepts Used

Hyoudou House: Also known as the House of the Raging Bull, a quite well-known family for it's creation and mastery of the Raging Bull's Rampage style. This house has produced and trained many famous warriors before, and used to be one of the only houses that proudly held on to it's traditions, till Ise's father died.

 **Like it? Let me know. Hate it? Let me know why. Any suggestions or ideas are welcome. Review, people. REVIEW!**


	2. Blackbirds

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 2

BLACKBIRDS

… _..Pacing the beat like a beast_

 _Rocking the block on repeat_

 _Speak from the cut like a rush of blood_

 _Paint red on the sleeves of the ones you love_

 _Lay the sick ones down and the bells will ring_

 _Put pennies on the eyes let the dead men sing…._

Ise was barely paying attention to the song as he waited in the park for her. _Yuuma Amano. Who knew?_ He thought to himself.

It had been two weeks since he started going to Kuoh Academy. Like everywhere else, he had expected to make no friends. He was always saying he had no time, or that he was too different to get along with someone. But both him and his mother knew it was an excuse. Ise was so used to being compared with his parents all the time that he had grown to hate and fear any exposure to other people. _And yet, I now have three friends. Girls no less._

His mother had her jaw hanging open as Rias and Akeno had walked to his home after school one day. She probably expected Ise to be alone like before. So did he. Yet, after that particular incident, both girls spent a lot of time with him. He of course, tried to push them away as subtly as possible. Honorifics, heavy usage of senpai to show that they were older. But they were too friendly and understanding for that. They understood his drive, never compared him to his parents. Instead, they showed interest in the simple things of his life and family. He was very embarrassed when his mother decided to show them his (naked) baby pictures. They still giggled whenever they saw him, much to his dismay.

Then there was Yuuma Amano. The girl, from first glance Ise knew was a loner. But unlike him, she was too shy and afraid to make contact. _Probably because of her parent's death._ He wondered.

Ise for up to some extent could connect with her. He had lost his father as well. And deep down, he was also afraid like her. _But she's alone, unlike me._ So he had decided to help her out.

It wasn't easy. He had to drag her out of her funk through sheer stubbornness. She was hesitant to even say hello. But slowly Ise had forced her out of her shell. She had an unspoken deal with him. No one would ask each other any questions or mix with each others social circles. That way, they were both able to live in the moment and forget their troubles.

 _She'll tell me when she feels comfortable._

Finally, she had asked him to show her around today. He readily agreed. He loved seeing her smile, Rias and Akeno as well. But unlike those two, it always looked like she bore a heavy pain in her heart. _She needs to share it with someone. All that pain, it needs to go._ He had told himself. Never thinking that he was the same, in a different way.

 _Why is she so late?_ He wondered as he paid attention to the last bit of the song. This was his favorite bit.

… _..I drop to the floor like I did before  
Stop watching  
I'm coughing  
I can't be more  
What I want and what I need are at constant war  
Like a well full of poison  
a rotten core  
The blood goes thin  
the fever stings  
And I shake from the hell that the habits bring  
Let the sick ones down  
the bells will ring  
Put pennies on the eyes  
let the dead men sing _

"Ise!" He heard a female voice call him as the song finished. He put away his headphones and smiled at her appearance. She was wearing a violet Wrap dress, Ise blushed as he noticed it was boldly hinting at her curves yet giving nothing away. She had her long dark brown hair made into a french braid. Ise was a very reserved guy, but even he had to admit his friend looked hot. The shy yet meaningful look she threw his way as she slowly approached made her look even hotter, if possible.

"H-Hi Yuuma." Ise stuttered as he greeted her. She gave him a shy smile. "Sorry I'm late."

"N-No problem." He replied as he fidgeted with his hands behind his back. _Should I give it to her?_

"What is it Ise?" Yuuma asked as she tilted her head in curiosity. _Ah, screw this._ He took out a deep purple rose and gently secured it over her left ear. Deciding to borrow a bit from his father's confident attitude, he followed with a hearty smile. "Perfection." His comment earning a deep bush from her.

"L-Lets go." He said with more courage than he felt. The whole thing was starting to feel more like a date than like an outing. However, as he started to walk, she grabbed hold of his left hand.

"Thank you." She said in a whisper. Ise gulped and started walking, albeit in a slower pace.

The day went by in a rush for Ise. Showing her around Kuoh turned out to be great fun, as he himself had never explored the city just for the sake of it. They visited the museum, the mini sea aquarium, ate in a western themed restaurant. They went to a book shop, on her insistence. Yuuma turned out be quite the bookworm, she had a craving for a good romance novel much to her embarrassment. After that, as they were walking hand in hand, they saw a band playing on the street. She stopped.

… _.And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70  
And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23  
And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways  
Maybe just the touch of a hand  
Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day  
And I just wanna tell you I am….  
_

"That's one of my favorite songs." Yuuma said. She looked at him with wondering eyes.

"Hey Ise?"

"Yeah?"

"Dance with me."

Ise blinked. _Dance?_ Before he could panic and refuse, she placed his hand on her waist. "Just be natural. Move slowly, listen to the beat." She instructed.

… _.'Cause, honey, your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen  
And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory  
I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways  
Maybe it's all part of a plan  
Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes  
Hoping that you'll understand…._

 _Here goes noting._ Ise thought as he started to move with her. The singer simply smiled at the two and tipped his hat to them as he finished the song and went on to play soft ones like it.

They danced to at least three songs before they left. By then, there were other couples dancing with them. As the third song played, Yuuma closed her eyes, and with a content smile placed her head on his chest. Ise's heart made a leap. _Oh boy._

Finally, they ended up in a park just outside of Kyoto. She was gazing at the horizon, a thoughtful look on her face, a blissful smile on her lips. Ise couldn't help but feel good. He made her happy, even if for a day.

"Ise?" She asked.

"Hmm?"

"Am I your friend?"

"Of course." Ise responded without a second thought.

"But what if I am not who you think I am? What if my past is one to be ashamed of? What if this whole thing is a lie?" She gave him a sad look. Ise looked into her violet eyes.

"Yuuma, does this friendship matter?"

"Huh?" She asked surprised.

"Because it does to me. I don't care what your past is. Honestly, I don't care if there's more I don't know about you. I believe in you, Yuuma. If you didn't have your reasons, you'd never hide anything. So long as you let me stand by your side, I'll be there no matter what. Hyoudous never abandon their friends." He reasoned. Yuuma closed her eyes.

In front his own eyes, she began to change. Her teenage form slowly morphed into a more mature, voluptuous one. Her hair lot it's color to a shiny midnight black as it came loose for the braiding, cascading past her hips. Her wrap dress changed it's shape to a very revealing yet well-armored black outfit. Finally, two pairs of pitch black wings burst from her back. As she opened her eyes, her light violet pools took a deeper crystal hue.

Ise's jaw dropped to the floor. Was this her? _But it can't be._ He thought as he looked at her wings. She looked very much like an angel, felt like one too. Ise couldn't explain it, but he felt that he was in the presence of a divine being, though it felt like the aura was subdued somehow.

"An angel?" Ise could refrain from asking.

"A fallen angel." She replied sadly. "I fell from the heavens Ise. God descended me for my sins. Tell me, do you trust me now? Will you place your faith in a being who was thrown out of heavens for the lack of it?" She stated more than asked.

Ise was speechless. He barely heard her. So as he didn't reply for a time, she took this as sign to continue.

"I understand if you change your mind Ise. You won't be a lesser man for it." She said as she prepared to remove his memories. She had impulsively revealed too much.

"What? NO!" Ise shook himself out of his stupor and embraced her hard, to her surprise.

"Yuuma, I said it already. You're my friend and so long as you hold on to me, I won't let you go. Have faith in that. Have faith in me." He told her resolutely as he pulled back.

She looked at him wide-eyed for a moment. Then she lunged at him and embraced him hard, almost knocking him over with the force.

"Raynare." She whispered after a while.

"Huh?"

"My real name is Raynare." She said as she snuggled a bit deeper into him.

"OK." He responded, unsure what to do at the moment.

"Ssh, don't talk. Just hold me." She shushed him as she enveloped them with her wings, both of them lost in the moment.

{}{}{}

They were heading home. Since the incident at the park, both had remained silent so far. The silence not letting the perfect moment escape. Yuuma, or Raynare rather had not changed her appearance. She had simply tucked away her wings and changed her outfit back in to the dress she was wearing earlier.

As they neared the nondescript house Raynare lived in, they came to a halt. Holding hands, they looked deep into each others eyes. Both tried to find out what to say, but before either could say anything they were interrupted.

"Ise?" Rias and Akeno was standing in front of them, surprise and unease written on their features.

"Hey girls." Ise greeted them.

"Um, Ise. I don't think I have the right to ask, but who is she?" Rias asked, her face slowly forming a look of detest.

Ise was stuck. He could not introduce her as Yuuma, as her present appearance was a far cry from the school girl they knew. He could not come up with another identity credible enough so fast. Also, the look both girls were sending Raynare was confusing him as well.

Raynare's voice cut into his thought. "It's okay Ise. They know what I am." At her confirmation, the girls tensed, and Ise's confusion increased further.

"How dare you set foot here! You and any of your kind is not welcome!" Rias said sternly.

"Ara, do I need to remind the naughty angel what happens if you do so?" Akeno said with a sadistic look on her face that made Ise shiver. He had never seen any of them so ticked off before. Beside him, he noticed Raynare had tensed up as well.

 _Shit, I need to handle this fast. I don't want to take a side in this._ He thought as he tried to find a way to diffuse the situation. He sensed that it was common hate of each others existence than personal hatred.

Ise stood in middle of the women and put up his hands to stop them. "Look, I don't know what is going on but I can't stand and watch my friends get in a fight."

"Ise you don't get it. She's a fallen-" Rias tried to protest.

"Angel. I know. And yes, I know what that entails. But so far, she has just as a good friend to me as you two. Let me ask you this, has she harmed you in way in the past?"

"No." Rias and Akeno admitted in unison.

"Then don't hate her because of what she is. Even if she was a bad person in the past which I can't believe, she has changed herself. Everybody deserves a chance. Besides, if you hate her then you should hate me too." Ise defended Raynare.

"Ise!" Akeno exclaimed.

"Yes, me too. Why do you think the Hyoudou family is not as respected as the other old houses? Why is people so hesitant to learn our style these days? That is because we are not simple fighters. The style that my ancestors have developed is a killer's art. It is a form of combat that allows you to kill your opponents most brutally and effectively. It is not called the Raging Bull's Rampage without a reason" He said as the girls looked at him in a new light.

"Being the last member of the house, I am also a master of the art. However, that makes me a potential killer. Does that mean you'll hate me?" He asked, now hating that his question may make him lose his friends.

"You're right Ise. It doesn't matter where you come from. To us, you'll always be our friend." Akeno said in a soft voice. Rias nodded along with her. As the crimson-haired beauty turned to the fallen angel to say something, a loud boom sounded as dust went up in the area. Ise pushed the girls to his back as he covered his eyes.

"Muu~ did you have to expose ourselves, Dohnaseek?" A female voice complained from somewhere.

"Oh, come on Mitlett. It's not like they can fight back really." A guy in a gray trench coat said as he tipped his black fedora back. What was surprising about him was that he had the same black feathered wings that Raynare had, though only a single pair.

"Oh alright you bloodthirsty oaf. So long as we can take the bitch with us." Said Mitlett. She was a bit on the small side wearing a Gothic outfit and a staff on her hand. She also had two pairs of wings behind her back, and she was floating lazily around.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Ise shouted at them, every muscle in his body tensed up.

The fallen called Dohnaseek looked at Ise with a frown. "Kid, you're out of your depths here. Just let us do our job. We want the fallen angel over there, nothing else. Run and you won't be killed." He stated calmly, making Ise clench his fists.

 _They are not even taking me seriously! Damn it!_ He cursed.

"Come on Raynare, let's go." The Gothic girl said.

"NO!" Raynare protested violently as she changed into her armored outfit and unfurled her wings.

"Oh come on Raynare-chan. We need your research findings on the extraction process." Mitlett pouted.

"No, I won't let it fall into your hands! I should have never found it in the first place!"

"Very well, will killing your friends here change your mind?" Dohnaseek asked, obviously bored.

"You will not harm my friends nor take anyone away!" Ise shouted in anger as he prepared for attack.

"Heh, ya got guts kid. To be a puny human and yet….." Dohnaseek could not finish his statement as his eyes widened in shock.

Beside him, Mitlett was building up power for a massive attack. But before she could finish, Ise had launched himself at her, sending his knee crashing into her chest. He couldn't see what happened next however, as a black light spear singed past his head. He then had to duck under the barrage that Raynare began to send his way.

Meanwhile, Ise was dodging the blackish spears that the Gothic girl was throwing at him. He was using his surroundings as a cover and assault ground. The benches, trees and climbs providing excellent points. He was barely keeping up though. Once the fallen had recovered, she proved to be way faster and stronger than him, especially with the long-range cover she had. _I'm way out of my league here._ He realized. He had hope though, as he saw she was fighting only using her raw power. No technique or style. He figured he needed only one opening, and he would get only one.

He switched to aggressive as he began to climb and roll out of the way of her attacks but instead of backing away, he would leap up and try to land a blow on her. Despite her hovering, she had to be still as she took aim so Ise utilized that. _Almost there._ Ise paced himself as he rolled away to the left, narrowly avoiding another barrage.

While Ise was busy fighting, the other two girls standing there, desperate to help their friend. "He's gonna die if he keeps this up." Akeno stated with fear for him.

"I know, but he's too close. I can't take aim." Rias said. "Let's help the fallen angel friend of his instead. Once that jerk is dead, we can gang up on the last one."

"Good idea." Akeno said in a serious tone, her right hand suddenly covered in a crackling aura.

Ise was still working on his opening. His plan was simple, tire her out. And it was working. She had thrown all she had in his way without reserve. Ise was able to dodge them all and attempt counterattacks at her. While it also tired him somewhat she was battered with his strikes. Ise had aimed for all her weak spots. She had shrugged them all off, but the loss of power and all those hits had made her sloppy. Ise dared to glance a peek at the others. Raynare was bombarding the other fallen with her power. Rias had a reddish orb in her hand, while Akeno was throwing bolts of lightning at him. _Freak out later. Survive now._ It was all for naught though, as the jerk was somehow making copies of himself while hiding away somewhere else unharmed. Ise spotted him behind a tree.

 _Now's my chance._ Ise prepared himself as Mitlett came close, frustrated at her repeated failures. "Hey, Rias! Akeno, Raynare!" He yelled. "Aim at me when I tell you to." The girls looked at him a bit surprised, but he silenced all their skepticism with his look. _Here we go!_ He ran toward her and leaped off a bench high in the air. "Now!" He shouted as he stomped on Mitlett's shoulders, stunning her for moment and then leaping off higher to his right. All three shot their powers together, and ground shook as it landed on their target. Mitlett was down.

Ise watched in slow motion as his rolled himself into the perfect position in midair. Dohnaseek was right below him, still focused on his partner's defeat. Ise used his legs to secure the fallen's neck and bent himself to the ground, forcing the man to follow headfirst and slam into the ground, smashing his skull. At the last moment Ise caught himself with his hand on the ground. He stood up and rushed to his friends.

"You guys alright?" He asked concerned as they looked at him like they had seen a ghost. Suddenly he was enveloped in a crushing three sided hug.

"Ise." All three girls said in unison, relieved.

"Y-your chocking me!" He managed to get out. He was relieved as they let him go immediately. _God knows, it wasn't just that. I know I shouldn't think about them that way, but it was too much._ He looked away to hide his blush as he remembered their feminine bodies pressed against his.

"That was incredible!" Raynare exclaimed, still shocked at Ise's victory.

"Look, we can talk later. We should move…..agh!" Ise could not finish his sentence as a light spear pierced his back.

"Ise!" Rias screamed as she caught him.

Over them, another female fallen angle was hovering. She was a tall and buxom woman with long, navy blue hair that obscured her right eye and brown eyes. Her attire consisted of a violet, trench coat-like top with a wide collar, a matching miniskirt, and black heeled shoes. The trench coat top was open at her chest, giving view to her breasts and cleavage. She also wore a gold necklace around her neck. The most noticeable detail about her was that she was sporting three pairs of wings.

"Kalawarner!" Raynare whispered, afraid.

"Hello, Raynare. How have you been? Well I hope." She said in a nonchalant tone.

"Burn in hell!" Raynare yelled at her, tears in her eyes.

"Oh ho, that's no way to greet a fellow angel. But then again, you have always acted below your station." She looked at the two lackeys she had sent. Dohnaseek was obviously knocked out. Mitlett on the other hand, heavily damaged and barely able to move. But she was still awake.

"I told you oafs to do a simple thing and you almost die." She told Mitlett. "S-sorry." The battered girl managed to choke out.

"No worries. We found her notes. We don't need her anymore." She said as she used her powers to lift both the fallen into the air.

Raynare's eyes widened at her words. They had found her notes. Ise was dying. She barely heard her next words.

"I'd have let you go, but to associate with devils? That can't be forgiven. I'll eliminate you all." She stated as she shot a massive burst of holy power at them.

Ise was barely holding on. He couldn't move or even think clearly. He was slowly fading away. But as he heard Kalawarner's words, something in him snapped. He forced himself to stand as he held his hands up in a defensive pose.

Akeno and Raynare were preparing to defend themselves. But they were too stunned to act as Ise stood up and took a defensive stance in front of them all. Just before Kalawarner's attack hit them, Ise's hands and feet became covered in golden bracers. Golden aura swirled around him as a solid golden dome sprang to life. The light was blinding as the holy power collided with Ise's. The light continued to increase as Ise somehow absorbed the attack. The Greek symbol Ω glowed in front of him as a voice announced loudly,

 **[Sacred Bull, Reverse Shot!]**

A massive golden trident formed in Ise's right hand. He arched his body and with all his might threw it at his enemy, falling to the ground immediately. Kalawarner was surprised to see such display of power but she quickly summoned Dohnaseek's body in front of her. The spear impaled the fallen angel's body and in a flash of golden light completely wiped it out of existence. She was about to attack, but by then Rias, Raynare had already prepared to strike her down. Akeno was clutching at Ise's falling form. Her eyes widened as she recognized the reddish orb in Rias's hands. She took Mitlett and fled through a magical circle.

"You bitch!" Raynare yelled at her, planning to chase and kill her. Rias caught her.

"Don't. Ise needs us more." Raynare looked at her and nodded hesitantly.

"Akeno, how is he?" Rias inquired.

"He's dying, Buchou. We can't heal him in time. And what was that?" She said as she looked at Ise's body. He had a hole bored through his heart.

"Not now, Akeno. Right now Ise's life is more important. Raynare. Got any options?" Rias asked.

"I'm not really good at healing. And I don't think there's any way to heal that in time." Raynare responded, sure her only friend was going to die.

"Then we have no choice." Rias said as a tiny red circle formed in front of her, forming various chess pieces.

"What are you doing?" Raynare asked hastily as she felt a devilish aura from them.

"These are the evil pieces." Rias simply said as she sat down beside Ise's body.

"No! Ise would have never wanted it." Raynare protested. "There must be another way!"

"Raynare, calm down. Buchou is Ise's friend too. She wants to see him okay as well." Akeno soothed the hysteric angel.

"That's weird." Rias frowned as she tried placing all eight pawn pieces on him, getting no response.

"Did you try the knight piece?" Akeno asked.

"Yes, he was too powerful or incompatible." Rias tried again with a bishop piece, but to not avail.

"Buchou, try the rook."

"But, you know how dangerous that may be."

"We have no other options."

"Very well." Rias summoned another circle, this one covered in chains. She reached in and pulled a rook piece. This one was different from the others. It was black in color and wooden, while the previous pieces. As she placed it on top his body, it started glowing a bright red, switching to a brighter golden then to neon blue. Rias gasped but placed her hands on top of it and began to chant.

"I, Rias Gremory, request of the Satan to take heed. Let this human be born into darkness. Give him another chance to pursue his dream, as you did yours. Let hell shake from his rebirth and heaven tremble at his might. Awaken, Issei Hyoudou! Live in the name of your own and submit to no other, Rise!"

Black tendrils rose from the earth as they covered the teen's body. The gaping hole in his body slowly started to recover. Once it was completely healed, the rook piece sank into his chest. Suddenly Ise gasped for air, and the instant lost consciousness.

"Will he be okay?" Raynare asked as she watched the whole process.

"He has already started healing. He'll be fine in a day or two." Rias replied in a relieved tone. "Akeno?"

"Yes, Buchou?"

"Take Ise to his room directly and guard him. I must let the others know. And Raynare too. Please take care of him till I come back." Both nodded.

Akeno and Raynare disappeared with Ise as Rias opened another seal and walked into it. "Ise, please don't hate me." She whispered as she faded in a red flash.

* * *

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	3. Rude Awakening

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

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Chapter 3

A RUDE AWAKENING

He found himself in vast unending nothingness. All around him was white, no other colors, no life. No sign of any existence. _Am I?_ He wondered as he tried to look at himself. He had no shape, no body, no soul. He was the nothingness.

After an endless time, suddenly the white canvas was torn open by a blinding neon blue light. He closed his eyes, if he had any. As the bright light toned down, he looked again. In front of him was a massive bronze automaton. Its head was shaped like a bull. In fact, it closely resembled a Greek minotaur. The automaton was probably big enough to tower over an eight-story building. He could see gears and shafts turning inside, powered by the same neon blue light. It flowed freely through the mechanism, rippling like waves of water. The automaton stood there in front of him, like an ever watching sentinel.

He had to look away as the light took a blinding hue again. As the light slowly toned down, he looked at the automaton. It had numerous cracks on it, the blue light oozing out of them. The automaton itself started to melt. He watched in fascination as bronze overflowed the canvas. The two liquids swirled in the vast area around each other, never mixing with each other like water and oil. The bronze condensed and changed its color to gold. It solidified in front of his eyes, the blue energy freely entering the shell. The light blinded him again.

When he could see again, what he saw took breath away. In front of him stood a tall warrior made of gold. It was more life-sized now than the gigantic automaton from before. Golden and delicate plates of armor covered the warrior's legs and arms, the neon blue light coming out of the creeks. The fists were covered with big gauntlets with lions faces embossed on top. The chest portion was covered in a huge plate, the lower torso of it depicting a bull's head. The abdomen area was protected with the traditional fur kilt. A large Corinthian helm hid the warrior's face, the light coming blazing out of the eye slits. All the parts of the shining golden armor was adorned with Greek symbols and patterns.

The warrior stood tall and proud as they both observed each other for what seemed to be an eternity. He felt a deep connection with it, as if it was part of his soul. The warrior tilted it's head, as if in curiosity. He looked at himself to see what was so interesting. He had his own body back again. Though it looked a bit taller and muscular than his lean structure. He didn't mind the change.

Without notice, the warrior dissolved into liquid gold and started to seep into him. Blinding light covered him again. When the light was gone, he found his hands and feet were covered brightly glowing bracers and boots. His whole body was covered in a lightly armored light blue robe, a small Greek symbol Ω glowing with same light on the left top torso. He closed his eyes.

 _another rude awakening  
the hard life that's been our school  
more of a cruel day's reckonings..._

… _..there is no kindness to waste  
why help those crying for more?  
it spins you around, takes you for a ride  
what is the point to even try?  
somehow got to learn to accept the rejection_

 _the tired thoughts from troubling  
a weary mind from worrying  
your constant fears upon wakening  
your real life left in your dreams….._

He couldn't recognize the song, but he knew it was playing near his real body.

It was time to wake up.

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Rias looked at her friend in worry. It had been three days since the event and Ise was yet to wake up. Normally if a devil was reincarnated, they would have to rest for a day or a bit more before they would wake up. But though Ise had immediately recovered from his fatal wound, he was still in a deep slumber. He didn't resemble a person sleeping, it was as if his soul had left his body.

She looked at the other two present in the room. Akeno and Raynare, the fallen angel were very worried for him as well. At first there was a tense atmosphere between the fallen and them, but Ise was their friend and he was their first priority. Keeping that in mind, they had pushed aside their differences and for now observed their mutual friend for any signs of recovery.

As expected, Ise's already tall muscular form had become even more pronounced. But Rias knew that his lean build hid more strength than expected. For some reason, she blushed a little as she noticed his bare chest.

She was snapped out of her musings as she heard Raynare shriek in joy. "Ise!" He was beginning to move about, eyes blinking as he blearily tried to look about.

"Huh? What's going on?" Ise asked as his vision finally cleared. He was in an unknown room, bare chested and all, with all three of his friends present.

"Um, Ise. How much do you remember?" Akeno asked carefully.

He furrowed his brows at her question, clearly trying to remember. After a minute had passed, he looked at her, a little shocked. "I remember everything till I got hit from the back and passed out. So it's all real huh?" His friends nodded.

"Ack!" He had the wind blown out of his lungs as Raynare lunged at him. "I-I though I'd lost you." She whispered as she snuggled deeper into him.

Ise was surprised, no shocked. As he looked at the other two girls he could feel relief and happiness evident on their faces. _They really care, don't they?_ He sighed as he held her. "Don't worry, I'm fine now." The whole room went quiet, neither occupants wishing to break the peaceful moment.

After a while, Ise decided to ask the question. "Mind explaining what happened?"

"Ise, it can wai-" Akeno tried to say, but he held up his hand to stop her.

"I won't be able to rest if I don't know. Tell me everything."

Rias sighed. "It's a lot to take in."

"I have time. Wait, how long have I been knocked out?" Ise panicked and let go of Raynare, ignoring her protests.

"Three days." Akeno responded.

"My ma! She doesn't know what happened, does she? She has no idea where I am, I have no idea where I am!"

"Calm down. Your ma and everybody at school are under the impression that you are okay and nothing has happened. And right now, you are in one of the apartments my family owns." Rias explained.

"B-but how?"

"Magic." Akeno stated happily as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Ise gulped.

"You sure you wanna know what happened?" Rias teased as she saw his face.

"Y-yeah."

"Very well. As you already know, Raynare here is a fallen angel. The reason why we were wary of her, because we are the exact opposite of her kind. We are devils."

"D-devils?"

"Yeap. You see Ise, the apocalypse from Bible has already happened, but not exactly in the way it was predicted. It took place in the form of a great war, between God, Satan and the Fallen Ones. All sides suffered heavy losses. The fallen withdrew from battle. The other two sides kept fighting until one day Satan attacked heaven. They killed each other in a heated clash."

"What!"

"Unfortunately, it's the truth. The God from Bible is dead." Akeno jumped in. "After that all sides have stopped any attempts at war. However, this is no peace. Just like last night, any of these sides would attack the other if they step in their home grounds. Right now, Japan is the ground for both devils and fallen angels."

"Kuoh town is exclusively my territory." Rias said.

Ise was barely keeping up with this. _My friends are devils and fallen angels? God is dead? Rias's territory? My head's gonna burst._ He managed to keep a stoic expression as he processed the info much to his credit. Suddenly a question hit him. He looked at Raynare. "If this is Rias's territory, then how come you are here? No offense." Rias and Akeno looked at her as well, both curious and a bit wary.

Raynare looked sad at the question. "I was hiding."

"Why? Have you committed any crime?" Rias inquired a bit heatedly.

"I used be a researcher at Grigory, the fallen's headquarters. My research was on sacred gears." She began to explain. "One day, I managed to discover a way to extract and unbind sacred gears from a dead carrier." The two devils gasped at her words.

Ise was confused. "Sacred gears?"

"Powerful artifacts or weapons either found, crafted or salvaged by God. Before he died, he bestowed all of them on humanity, probably as a means to protect themselves and fight back." Akeno answered.

"But what you say is impossible. When a carrier dies, the gear simply passes onto another human. You can't just take it!" Rias looked skeptic.

"I managed it. It's complicated and delicate process but it can be done." Raynare continued. "Ever since God's death, a lot of things has been possible. But I'm getting off topic here. Anyway, after I discovered the process, I showed it the board of Governors. Azazel-sama was not there, unfortunately. So I had to submit it to Kokabiel instead." She spat.

"K-kokabiel?" Rias looked a bit scared.

"The war crazed fallen angel from the Bible? Yes, him. He said nothing up front of course, but later he sent the fallen you saw last night. Kalawarner, she told me that Kokabiel wanted my help in collecting sacred gears. I could guess why but if I refused, he would have killed me. So, I agreed." Raynare started to sob. Both Ise and Akeno attempted to soothe her.

"I-I thought that he was gonna just collect them for war and at some point I could warn Azazel-sama. But I-I couldn't stay after I overheard him talking one day. He was planning to take the gears from live humans." Everybody gasped at her next words. "He said he'll just kill them first and them hand them over to me, like it was nothing."

"So that's why I came here, hoping they wouldn't raise a ruckus in a devil territory." She finished, tears falling from her eyes like sad droplets of rain.

Suddenly, Rias walked to her and placed a firm hand on her shoulder, surprising her. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, Raynare. But I promise you, from this moment on I will see to your protection. After things have cooled down a little, I will inform my brother and he in turn will inform your leader."

"T-thank you." Raynare managed to say.

"No worries, after all that's what friends are for right?" Rias smiled. Ise simply looked at them, shocked, saddened, happy and still confused. Akeno looked at him and promptly fell off her perch, laughing at his face while clutching at her stomach in a very unladylike manner. Rias and Raynare joined her a moment later. Ise pouted, leading to even more laughter.

"So, Ise where was I?" Rias furrowed her delicate brows as she tried to remember. "Oh, I remember. My territory. As you can guess, no other supernatural being may enter here without my permission. That the fallen did, is something of concern." She became lost in her thoughts.

The room went silent again. Ise tried to get a hold over what he was told. But it was broken by Akeno.

"Say, Buchou. Aren't you forgetting something?"

Rias looked at her with a slight nervous expression, then back at him. He was confused at her demeanor. "I don't think…."

"If you don't tell him, I will. He is my friend and I think he deserves the truth from me." Akeno interrupted.

Rias sighed as she approached Ise and sat down beside him. "Ise you remember getting hit, right?"

"Yeah." He grimaced as the memory of pain came back to his mind.

"Well, let me be blunt. You couldn't survive that, not as a human. None of us had the capability if healing you. So I had to….." She went silent.

"Had to what?" Ise slightly raised his voice at her, making her flinch.

"She turned you into a devil." Akeno finished. Ise just sat there, his face calm and contemplating. Slowly his lips broke into a smile.

"It's okay. You're devils too right? I'm glad to be a devil, if you are the same." He said in a happy voice.

Rias hesitated. She knew if Ise knew the whole truth he might not feel the same way. But he was her friend. _Might as well give it as bluntly as possible._ She took a breath to calm down and held her right palm in front of him. A crimson circle blazed as small crimson chess pieces came to view.

"Ise, listen well. Since the great war, our numbers diminished greatly. We cannot reproduce at the same rate as humans, so we invented these." She held up the pieces in front of his curious eyes. "They are called evil pieces. They can turn any living beings into low-rank demon servants. We use them to increase our population, and to serve under us. I used my rook piece on you."

She saw understanding light up in his eyes, followed by a frown. She gulped as she continued. "So, form now please live for me, Ise."

She flinched away from him, so did the others. Ise's face was filled with rage, he was unconsciously releasing his demonic aura. All three widened their eyes from the slight pressure he was emitting. It was very impressive for a newbie devil, even a rook piece.

"Pull it out." He said in a dark voice. Getting no response, he yelled at Rias. "Pull it out!"

"But you'll die!" Raynare tried to reason.

"You don't get it." He whispered after a moment. "All my life my dream was to bring back my family name to its former glory. To surpass my parents. To become a true master." Tears flowed down his eyes.

"If I die now, I will be remembered as a young prodigy. A fighter who had potential. Not as some low-rank devil owned by someone, to be at her mercy. So, Rias if you respect our friendship then pull it out."

"I-I…." Rias tried to say.

"I can't." She held her head down.

"Why the hell not?" Ise screamed, his dreams ruined. His future gone, replaced with a life of servitude.

He suddenly a very feminine body pressed against his. Though he struggled to get loose, he could not.

"Oh Ise. She can't because she doesn't want anything bad happen to you." Akeno's soft voice fell on his ears. For some reason, he felt a forced calm on himself. "Please listen. It's true that you are a low rank devil now, but if you work hard, then you can end up in the top as a high class devil. Then you get your own peerage, like Rias. And you can go make a name for yourself. I'm a mid class devil now, I wish to reach the top as well."

"Your dream isn't gone Ise. It opened up a new direction for you." She softly finished as she let him go.

 _I need to think._ He thought as he felt his rage go down. He needed to consider. So he got up and began searching for his clothes.

"Ise what are you looking for?" Raynare asked him as he searched for his clothes.

"I'm taking a walk. I need to think." He told her. With a snap of Rias's fingers, he was fully clothed.

"Thanks." He gave her a wry smile before he closed the door behind him. Rias smiled as well. _At least he doesn't hate me._

"Don't worry, Buchou. He'll be back." Akeno assured her. Rias took a breath and turned serious.

"Hey Raynare. Didn't Kalawarner say they found your papers?"

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Ise was wandering, his mind busy with processing what happened. Now that he had calmed down somewhat, he felt that none of his friends was at fault. _They tried to save me. They had no options._ He walked on, looking at the scenery. _But my dreams. Akeno did say I can work my up._

"Hawaau!"

 _Hmm?_ A sudden voice broke into his thoughts. When he turned around, there is a Sister who is on the floor. She was spreading her arms wide open and her face was on the ground. _Ouch._ That certainly was a clumsy way of falling down.

"Are you okay?" He approached the Sister and give her his hand so she can stand up.

"Auu. Why do I keep on tripping over… Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you very much." She said in broken Japanese.

Judging from her voice, she looked young to him. _Is she the same age as me?_

The Sister's veil flew off because of the wind.

Her blonde hair, which was hidden underneath, falls down onto her shoulders.

He spotted a bag beside her. It was a rare occasion to see a nun in a town. It was his first time seeing one. He picked up her veil that had fallen nearby.

"T-Traveling?" He asked in nonchalant tone, but he was curious.

"No, that's not it. I was appointed to the Church in this town… You must be a resident of this town. It's a pleasure to meet you." She said as she bowed.

 _But the church in this town was abandoned long ago. Maybe they are trying to start it again?_

"I have been in trouble since I got here. Ummm…I can't speak Japanese that well…I was lost and other people couldn't understand what I was saying…" She held her hand together in front of her chest, really sad.

"Don't worry, I can get you there." Ise said with a smile as he lifted her bag.

"T-Thank you." She said as she bowed again.

"It's no trouble." He chuckled as she tripped again.

"Hawauuu!"

They slowly walked together. Ise lost in his thoughts, and the nun hesitantly walking beside him, being mindful of tripping.

"Uwaaaaaah!"

What he heard was the cry of a boy.

"Are you alright Yosh-kun?"

He'd be fine since he was with his mum. It seemed like he just tripped over.

But suddenly, the Sister who was walking behind him walked towards the park.

"Hey." He tired to call her back but to no avail.

The Sister went inside the park, towards the boy who is sitting down and crying. He also followed the Sister.

"Are you okay? Boys shouldn't cry with a minor injury like this." Sister patted the boy's head gently. The boy probably didn't understand what she was saying, as she switched to English. But the Sister had a very kind expression. The Sister put her palm where the boy had injured himself.

Next moment, he was in shock. A green light orb appeared from the Sister's palm and flashed onto the boy's knee.

When he looked carefully, the boy's injury started to disappear.

 _Was the light from her hand healing the boy's injury? But that's impossible._ Then what Akeno said came in to his mind. _Magic._

As soon as she backed away from the child, the mother snatched him away. She gave a sad smile in their direction, and then walked back to him. Ise simply motioned her to go, she nodded.

As they began to walk again, Ise was conflicted whether he should ask her or not.

"It's a gift from God. I can heal people with my faith." She smiled, but a lot of sadness was hidden within it.

They kept walking in silence till the church came into view. The nun turned to him and bowed.

"Thank you, but you don't have to go any further Mr.?" She tilted her head cutely.

"Hyoudou, my name is Issei Hyoudou. And yours?"

"Um, Asia Argento." She replied.

He thought of escorting her into the church, but he felt an odd sensation from it. It felt like a perversion of something previously held sacred. He felt sick to his stomach. _Aha, I'm a devil. Maybe that's why._ He decided not to go inside so he handed the bag back with a small smile.

"I guess I will see you later then." He said, as the girl thanked her again and went away.

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"Ise!" All three girls happily said as they saw their friend come in. He looked like he finally reached a decision, and judging by his smile it was the good one.

"Hey Rias." He called.

"Yes?"

"I have decided that I'll live on. But I have a few conditions." He told her.

This time all three jumped on him. _What's with girls and hugs?_ He wondered as he was being chocked to death by them.

"Ise, you don't have to give me any conditions." Rias said happily as she pulled back from the embrace. "I revived you as my friend, like Akeno here. So, you're always free to do what you want. I just hope you'll support me when I need you, and always stay as my friend." Ise couldn't say no to that.

"Oh, Rias. Are we supposed feel weird if we come in touch with holy stuff?" He asked, because Raynare's aura was itching him a bit but not as the church. He hadn't even noticed her aura when he woke up.

"Yes, why?" She narrowed her eyes.

"I might have gone near the old church." He said sheepishly as he scratched his head.

"Um, Ise. Why did you go there?" Raynare asked with a little alarm in her voice. Ise told everyone about the nun and the odd feeling he had. By the end of his story, Raynare had grown extremely panicked.

"We have to go there now!" She screamed.

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 _Damn it Ise! How could you not have guessed?_ He cursed himself for the thousandth time as Rias prepared a transportation circle.

"So Asia Argento possesses the sacred gear 'Twilight Healing'?" Akeno asked to be sure.

"Yes. That gear has the ability to heal any kind of physical wound of any living being." Raynare stated as she helped Rias.

The church was too far away to make it there in time. Unfortunately as Akeno had explained, though devils can use transportation circles to get anywhere a holy place was a major exception. Plus, it would also weaken them. So Raynare came up with the idea of mixing her holy power and create one that will let them pass and protect them from the holy effects for a time. She turned out to be quite the genius.

 _Rias is quite kind, different than from many would expect._ It wasn't devil's job to help an ex-holy maiden. Yet she took it upon herself because Asia had been estranged for healing a devil. _An excuse. You just want to help her._ Ise thought fondly.

"Damn it! Work!" Raynare cursed as she poured more power into it. _I promised Asia. I promised her the fallen won't leave her. I won't leave her now._ She began sweating from the power usage.

"There, done! Everyone get ready." Rias yelled as the light violet circle whirred to life.

The church appeared abandoned, as usual. But Ise felt like there was something more.

"They have set up a barrier Buchou." Akeno confirmed.

"That was expected. Raynare?"

"Well, Dohnaseek is dead. That leaves Mitlett and Kalawarner. And at least a dozen exorcists."

"But won't Kokabiel want to be here?" Rias asked skeptically.

"I don't think so. His presence would be harder to conceal."

"Then should we charge in?" Rias pointed to Mitlett, who became visible after Akeno dispelled the barrier, _maybe._ Ise had to depend on guesswork. _I'm way too inexperienced._

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Asia's scream sounded with a large flash of light.

"Hey who's there? Ughhhh!" Mitlett was obliterated as Akeno's lightning struck her, followed by Raynare's holy blast and the same glowing red orb of power by Rias.

"Right." Ise said to nobody as he ran to keep up.

After they had blasted open the church doors, a horrible sight came into their view. Asia was hung up on the giant cross over the alter. She had been crucified but was upside down, blood leaking out of her hands, feet. Her eyes too, as they had been gouged out. Kalawarner was hovering near her, about two dozens of exorcists chanting in chorus.

They stopped, speechless. Their mind couldn't cope with the nightmare they were seeing.

"I have to say, Ray." Kalawarner looked at her. "Your method was way too boring. What's the fun in taking something from a dead body? So I came up with a way to extract it from a live person. It's simple really, all I have to do is keep her..." She pointed as Asia. "Barely alive, and in a lot of pain, Fun, no?" She asked with an amused expression.

"You bitch!" Raynare shouted as she hauled a barrage of holy spheres at her. Kalawarner held up her hands in response, a barrier taking the hit then passing away. She looked at her in surprise.

"Why, Ray I was under the impression that you were a big useless brain sack. It seems you can pack a punch as well. Good, that means I can get some workout." The exorcists tensed as well, waiting to strike.

Raynare was about to let loose another barrage, but a firm hand fell on her shoulder. She looked back to see it was Ise. His expression was calm, yet he radiated power, his anger evident.

"Akeno?" His voice sounded harsh.

"Yes?"

"Blast an opening for me with your lighting. I'll make a hole. Rias, Raynare follow me. You two will assault her. Rias try to finish her off, go heavy. Raynare, slip out and get Asia. Akeno, take over Raynare."

This time nobody questioned him. Akeno let loose her thunder over the exorcists, nearly frying many of them. Ise jumped at the now easy targets, carving out a path with his relentless strikes.

He ducked under a white sword swinging his way and swiped at the man's feet. As he dropped, Ise took the sword from his palm and stabbed him in the chest, shoving him away to the front and clearing more space.

Rias and Raynare had already gone off to face the fallen. They had to be careful as Kalawarner always hovered near Asia, using her to reduce their attacks and also not letting them get near. All the while blood kept dripping from the nun's body. Even when Akeno joined them, it was no use.

There were only three more exorcists left standing. Ise could see this was not going anywhere.

"Akeno, fry these bastards!" He yelled as he threw the one that lunged at him. He leaped for Kalawarner, and just as his knee crashed against the fallen's surprised face, thunder boomed in the background.

Raynare saw her chance and flew off Asia. Ise completely ignored her for now, focusing on her enemy. She was powerful and a bit skilled, but still preferred power overall. As Ise, Rias and later Akeno ganged up on her, she had no chance. She kept throwing her light spears at them, but to no avail.

"I'm going in, cover me." Ise commanded as Akeno blocked Kalawarner's barrage with her magic. "Rias, follow my lead." He leaped off, doing half a high front roll over the fallen. As he positioned himself just over her head he grabbed it and completed the roll, smashing her headfirst on floor. As he leaped off, Rias's massive orb impacted, obliterating any signs of existence. As they rushed over to Raynare, they were met with a heartbreaking sight.

Raynare was cradling Asia's head gently as she attempted to stem the flow of blood, to no avail. Asia coughed up more blood as she tried to speak.

"Raynare-sama, you came." She managed to say.

"Asia" Raynare sobbed as the nun's blood covered her hands.

"It's okay, you came." She tired to smile, but the pain she was feeling turned it into a grimace.

"B-but I..." Raynare couldn't finish her sentence as she spotted Rias. "Please! Save her. I beg you!" She pleaded. Rias nodded, as she prepared to take out her pieces. "Her wounds are too severe and done by holy elements, I'm not sure if it'll work." She commented.

"Please, don't." Asia coughed.

"B-but w-why?" Raynare asked.

"Because I want to ask God where I went wrong. I-I want..." She coughed again, blood spurting off her mouth. "I want to know why I-I never had friends, why I was hated though I loved him so. Why he never listened to my prayers." Rias wanted to say God was no more, but Raynare motioned her not to. _Destroying her faith will not help._ Ise realized.

Raynare kept holding Asia in her arms, pleading but the girl refused.

"F-fine. Die on me." She finally gave up, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"Okay." Was Asia's weak response.

"Hey, Raynare-sama?"

"Huh?"

"Take my sacred gear." She visibly forced herself to speak. "Promise me you will live on, make friends. Be happy, free….." Her head dropped to the side, lifeless.

"Asia!" Raynare's voice echoed through the church, it's sadness resonating in the hollow space.

A bright green glow shrouded Asia's lifeless body, slowly seeping out of her. The light formed a clear orb, a pair of golden rings in it. _Asia's sacred gear._ Ise realized. The rings placed themselves on Raynare's fingers, the green light now enveloping her.

The church fell into an uneasy silence. Nobody dared to say a thing. Ise finally walked up to her as she clung onto the body, whimpering from time to time.

"I'm sorry. Oh God, I'm so sorry." She was whispering desperately. When Ise placed his hand on her shoulder, she jumped a little as if startled. Then she let go of the body and hugged him fiercely, deep crimson splattering on his clothes. Ise thought of comforting her. _How do I say it'll be alright when it'll never be?_

They stood like there for a seemingly unending time. Tears flowed freely, words replaced with them. None but Raynare knew her, but they all felt deeply for the innocent girl. It was wrong, downright sinful for something so pure to be wasted away.

Raynare let go. She wiped the tears off her eyes, a new fire in them.

"Rias, turn me."

"Huh?"

"Make me a devil."

"Are you sure? You might regret it later." Akeno hesitantly asked her.

"When I fell from heaven, I fell because of love." She looked at the night sky in wonder. "I loved this world. It's beauty, it's lives. They fascinated me. I saw humans love and live for each other, I wanted it. I wanted to be loved. And just like Asia, when I was kicked out, for wanting more than God's love."

She turned to face them. "I am not going throw away the chance at life I have. Being a devil is the only way. Asia told me to live, and damn it I will!" She declared strongly albeit sadly.

"Very well." Rias sighed as she pulled out her pieces. The two bishop pieces glowed ominously in front of her. She sent the rest away as she prepared to place them on Raynare.

"Rias, one day Ise will have a peerage like you, right? Then please promise me that you'll let me join him." Raynare stated much to Ise's surprise. Rias simply placed the pieces over her bosom in response.

"I, Rias Gremory command Raynare the fallen to hereby live as my bishops on the condition that she may be free to join Hyoudou Issei's peerage when formed." She intoned as a crimson aura took over.

When the glow finished, Raynare remained the same Her features had become a tad bit more feminine and prominent, but there were no changes to her wings. Her holy aura felt it had not been subdued in the least bit, instead she felt more….free.

"There." Rias said as Raynare had been successfully turned. She then turned and watched Ise gently picking up Asia's body. He headed to the backyard.

"Ise, where are you going?"

"Outside. She deserves a proper burial." He answered in a solemn tone. The trio of girls followed shortly.

* * *

 **Firstly, thanks to everyone who took the time to follow, favorite or review. I greatly appreciate it. As for the few questions you guys may have, I'll try to answer.**

 **1)I am not sure about the pairing yet. I have a lot of candidates in mind, but be sure that only five will be included. If Rias, Akeno or Raynare will be included is still up for internal debate.**

 **2)Ise will be strong, but by his own rights. Not because of any sudden sacred gear power ups or anything. He'll have to fight to survive. I'm gonna be extra tough on him.**

 **3)A question some may ask. How come Raynare has two pair of wings, or Kalawarner three? That of course shows their power, but only power. It does not make them a better fighter, only potentially powerful. A single paired fallen can be much more of a challenge if skilled.**

 **Finally, a massive sorry to any Asia or Gasper fans. I just had to do it, the story made me do it. I really tried, I really did. But in the end, I felt that letting go would be a good approach.**

 **As usual, love it or hate it, let me know. Any ideas, suggestions are welcome. And REVIEW!**


	4. Straws Pulled at Random

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 4

Straws Pulled at Random

 _What solace lies in the arms of fate  
The ill embrace of uncertainty  
When did I leave this in other hands  
To be pulled down at chance_

 _Ripped away by destiny-claws_  
 _Am I another of fate's possessions_  
 _Dwelling the lie of freedom_  
 _Just another straw pulled at random…_

 _...Drawn back into the origin-vortex  
Uprooted and ground to dust  
Retracted into anti-existence  
A magnet repelled by life's polarity..._

Ise sighed as he listened to the song play. It was surprisingly close to what his life felt like now. Here he was a high school kid with a dream, and now that was replaced with…... _whatever_. He decided not to pursue that chain of thoughts. _Life has no easy mode. Not for dreamers._

It's been a week since Asia had died. The whole incident was a huge shock to his systems, making him realize how cruel people can be. Rias and Akeno looked down as well, but it was Raynare who had taken it the hardest.

She was blaming herself for Asia's death, and when the guilt toned down the loss struck. Out of them all, she had known Asia the most. Ise had only known with her for an hour, and even he had to admit he felt depressed. _Plus, Raynare was not used to…...that. Heck, that was too gruesome for anybody._ Ise grimaced at the thought. Raynare may have lived through a war, but torturing and killing an innocent girl like that…...The thought of it made him want to puke. _Shouldn't have killed that bitch that easily._ He sighed as he looked at the park grounds. _Not here. Maybe she's still at home._

Rias had offered Raynare a place to stay, which she gratefully accepted. It turned out to be a small apartment near the academy. _And since then she's holed up there._ He thought as he climbed up the stairs. He knocked on the door twice after hesitating for a moment.

"Who is it?"

"It's me Raynare."

"Ise? Hold on." She pulled back the catch and let him in. He looked at her.

She was wearing nothing but a pair of black, lacy boy shorts and a very baggy, plain black tee. Long black bangs were covering her face as she had her head lowered a bit. She looked very upset, but still Ise had to gulp as he averted his eyes. _Fucking hormones…_ He carefully kept his eyes away from her as he approached. "How are you?" He asked.

"Fine." She mumbled.

"Bullshit." He said softly as he pushed her hair away from her face. She had tear stains on her cheeks, eyes red from crying.

"Don't you have classes?" She asked trying to avert her eyes. He didn't let her, placing a gentle hand on her cheek.

"Didn't want to go. Not while you keep bawling your eyes out."

"Told you, I'm fine. Go away."

"Nope." He said with in a cheery voice.

"Screw you." She tried to move away, but he held her in a firm grasp. She squeaked as she felt the pressure, so he eased off in embarrassment. Her face went red as well.

Ise simply took her hand and led her to the couch. They both sat down, both absorbed in their thoughts. One was worried, the other trying to see the value of her life thus far.

"I-I promised her." Raynare spoke up after a bit of hesitation. "That I'd protect her. She had such a rough life. I just wanted to give her a new one." She began to sob. "And it was my research that took her life away. What kind of a person does that make me?"

Ise thought a little before he replied, "If you see it that way, then it makes you the bad one here." She looked at him stunned, hurt by his remark. "But tell me." He calmly continued. "What would Kalawarner be then? She made a false promise to protect an innocent girl, tried to kill a fellow fallen. then killed, no she tortured her to death for her own gains. What would she be then?"

"I can't say things will be right, I can't say I understand or that it was nothing to be devastated about. It was one of the worst events of my life. But Raynare, was it your fault? Could you have changed her fate? How the hell can a researcher stand against soldiers? Yet you tried by hiding her away. They found her." She was still silent. He took placed her hands in his as he looked her in the eyes.

"Raynare, life has no certainties. My father died in an accident, though he was at his peak. None of us expected that to happen." He paused, swallowing to calm down. She grasped his hands a bit tighter. "I still miss him a lot you know. I can't bring him back. Same with Asia. The best we can do, all we can do, is remember them, cherish the good memories we had together, honor them by taking in their best traits and let them live through our actions." He collected himself and smiled sadly at her.

"Ise's right. Asia wanted you to live, make friends. You should honor that wish." A familiar voice said from their behind. They both looked behind to find Akeno and Rias, with gentle smiles on their faces.

"Hey there. You skipped too?" Ise smiled back as he stood up.

"Well, how can we go when our friend is in such a state?" Akeno grinned.

Raynare looked at all of them. _They came here for me._ She took a moment to calm herself, then looked at them with new found resolve.

"You're right. I can't let this stop me. I will fulfill Asia's wish. And I will grow stronger so that I never have to break another promise like that, ever." She said with steel in her eyes.

"Now that we have come to that conclusion, I think it is time we go and visit the clubroom." Rias announced.

"The clubroom?" Ise and Raynare asked in unison, confused.

"Yeah, remember that I'm the president of the Occult Research club?"

"I think I'll risk my chances and of being the idiot here and ask, why?" Ise commented.

"To meet your fellow devils silly." Akeno giggled.

"Fellow devils?"

"Of course. I have other er...'servants' as well. They were just unavailable before. Now, let's go!" Rias tugged on his arm with such strength that it made him wince.

"Ouch! Okay, okay! I'll go. What about you, Raynare?"

"I'll go as well. Let me just go and change okay?" A devious smirk played across her lips for a moment. "Can you please make sure he doesn't peek?"

"Hey!" He complained undignified. "My parents taught me better than that, I'll have you know." Much to the laughter of the other two.

"Sure, sure." Raynare said in disbelieving tone as she walked away, extra sway in her hips. Ise couldn't help but look, and the girls laughed again. _Damn hormones._ He cursed.

{}{}{}

"Come again?" He asked, not believing his ears.

"Yeap, we own this school." Rias said like it's was of no importance. "And the Occult Research club is nothing but a front for all our activities."

"So, that means I can get away from the classes and spend time training?" He asked giggling manically like some villain from a cheesy movie.

"Oh no you don't." Akeno said as she grabbed his left ear. "Your mother wanted you to be an educated man. You will not skip school for training."

"In fact, we will make sure you will attend classes regularly unless needed. Otherwise, we will inform your mother." Rias gave him a mild glare.

His throat went dry at the thought of his ma knowing. He could picture her using him as a punching bag. _Scary._ But he still saw a bit hope. "What would the word 'needed' define?"

"That's it, you get no exceptions. And don't think you can escape, we will know." She glared harsher at him as Akeno pulled even harder.

"Ow, Ow, Ow, OW!" Ise yelled as he literally got pulled by the ear all the way to the clubroom.

The clubroom was on the second floor of the old school building. It was very spacious, almost unbelievably so. It was decorated with Victorian age furnishings, lavishly adorned with golden urns, framed pictures and such. All of these depicted devils and hell. But even within this ominous setting, there was a strong presence of modern amenities. There was a 30 inch television on the room's left wall, a PS4 hooked in. The room was air conditioned, a shower to the far side and a door to a small kitchen. Behind the main desk was another door, leading to a small room. Probably for the president's personal use.

When the group entered the room, they found two occupants in it. One was a handsome blonde boy about Ise's age, playing a game on the console. The other was a small girl with white hair and very delicate features. She was sitting on the couch, nibbling at a chocolate bar. Both wore the Kouh Academy uniform, respectively for second and first years. They looked up at the group quizzically.

Unfortunately, Ise couldn't admire the scenery, due to the death grip of Akeno on his ear. He suspected the ear was probably a bit torn or something.

"Akeno, can you please let go? It really hurts." He pleaded.

"Only if you promise to not skip school." She smiled back at him sweetly.

"I-I promise." And she let him go. He sighed comically while clutching at his ear, checking if it was torn off or not. Only to find that the two current occupants were looking at him weirdly while his 'friends' were giggling from the side.

The blonde boy came forward and bowed respectfully to Rias. "Mistress." The small girl followed. Rias motioned for them to stand up.

"I think this would be the thousandth time I say this, but do not call me 'Mistress'. My family may insist upon it, but I do not." The blonde boy frowned.

"But Mistress..." He tried to object.

"No."

"But.."

"If you must then call me Buchou like Akeno does. My proper title as a student of this academy." She said exasperated.

"Y-yes, Mistre-Buchou." He corrected himself.

"And how have you managed in our absence?" Akeno asked.

"I have completed our paperwork, while we both have been busy with the devil duties, My Lady." The boy stated. Akeno looked a bit annoyed with her title as well, but she didn't object.

"Oh, and how many have you completed?" Rias looked at Koneko.

"14 so far, Buchou." She said in a cold voice.

"Well done." Akeno commented.

"Now." Rias clapped her hands drawing everybody's attention. "It's time to meet your fellow members! Yuuto, Koneko introduce yourselves." The boy came forward.

"My name is Yuuto Kiba. I am the Knight of Rias Gremory and a member of the Occult Research club." He bowed as he finished.

"Koneko Toujou. Rook of Rias Gremory and a member of this club." The girl said in an emotional voice as she bowed.

"Ise Hyoudou." Ise kept it simple as he bowed. _Mistress? So they address her as Mistress?_

"H-Hello, my name is Raynare." Raynare said from his side, bowing as she finished.

"Raynare here is my Bishops. And Ise-" Rias was interrupted.

"B-Bishops?" Kiba and Koneko said in unison, eyes wide.

"Yes." Rias said proudly. "She took both pieces. She used to be a fallen angel, so it is not that surprising."

"B-But one of them was an M-mutation piece." Kiba said, a little intimidated.

"What is a Mutation piece?" Ise asked.

"An Evil piece can only turn a being into a devil if it has the strength to do so. So often a more powerful being will take up multiple pieces of the same type. However, a Mutation piece is special. It has the capability of turning such a being alone. The Evil pieces also give out a boost of sorts, the Mutation piece does more, taking it's user up a level." Akeno explained.

"So, for Raynare to up two pieces must be a really rare thing, huh?" Ise thought out loud.

"Yes, it is." Rias answered with a smile. "She has the potential to match a ten-winged fallen. And even more due to…." She went silent here. The group went quite at the horrible memory. Ise decided to cheer them up. He gave Raynare a large smile.

"Wow, Raynare." He exclaimed as the girl in question blushed.

"As I was saying, Ise is my Ro…." Rias was about to say before she was interrupted by an alarm. Rias simply snapped her fingers and a red circle lit up.

"Mission for Rias Gremory and her peerage." A mechanical voice began to say. "A stray devil, Vizer has been spotted in your territory. Eliminate it before it can cause any damage or escapes. It's current location has been tracked and sent to you, along with additional information. Good luck." The circle faded away as the message ended.

"Well, looks like we got a mission in our hands. Let's go now before he escapes." Rias ordered as she began checking the info.

{}{}{}

"So a stray devil is a devil that has killed it's master and escaped. Generally, such a devil goes on a rampage and kills many, troublesome like a rabid dog. So it is eliminated as soon as possible, by any faction that sees one" Raynare was explaining to Ise as the rest of the group were scouting forward.

Eventually, they came near an abandoned factory. It didn't show any signs of life from the outside, but Ise felt a very menacing, putrid aura that made him want to vomit.

"This is it." Rias stated, looking at the massive gates. "Ise, Raynare." They looked up hearing their names. "I want you guys to fall back and just observe. While fighting may not be so unfamiliar to either of you, I suggest this so that you may see how the Evil pieces work." Both nodded in agreement.

"Alright then. Let's go. Akeno, put up a barrier." Rias outstretched her left arm toward the gates while Akeno snapped her fingers.. A tiny crimson sphere came out of Rias's hand, rushing forward and a huge boom later, the gate was no more. Ise felt a very chaotic aura from her, almost like it was hungry. He shivered a little from the power.

Suddenly, a silhouette came into view. It looked like a very womanly figure, her eyes glowing an ominous red from the near dark factory building.

"You found me? Oh well, guess I have to kill you now." She said in very alluring voice yet it nearly made Ise puke. He could sense her greed, and the blood of the ones she killed on her.

Rias didn't seem at all fazed, in stead she began to explain. "Now, as Akeno said before all Evil piece have a specialty and can turn matching beings. For example, Kiba is my Knight."

"Why you bitch, how dare you ignore me!" The stray screeched in rage as it dashed at them. However, she had to stop as suddenly blood came out of her left shoulder. "Argh!" She clutched her shoulder in agony just as Kiba appeared right behind her, with a sword in his hand. Ise could see the knight leave and strike her at very high speeds. And boy, was he impressed.

"A Knight piece is built for speed and matches well with someone who uses close range to long range weapons. Like Kiba's sword or even a bow. However, a Knight has low magical potential and a low endurance or strength."

"Take this!" The stray had recovered from the attacks and now attempted to attack Kiba, only for him to dodge. She had to duck under as a small fist sailed over her head. It was Koneko.

The stray moved away and laughed at her. "You, a kid dares to challenge me? I'm a Bishop, like I'll lose to some baby." She taunted her, but Koneko face gave no expressions. Suddenly, she launched a huge fireball at the small girl. Koneko took the hit head on, not even trying to move. As it impacted, a cloud of dust covered their view.

"Koneko!" Raynare called in fear. Rias only grinned. "Don't worry, Koneko is my Rook piece." A ear piercing scream came to their ears, followed by the stray hitting the ground just beside them.

"A Rook is may not be as fast as a Knight, but such a devil outmatches the piece in sheer brute strength and endurance. Generally a hand to hand fighter is the ideal choice for this." Ise looked at her in understanding. He was astonished that a Rook could be so strong, as Koneko simply pummeled her into pulp.

"For a Bishop, the piece has high magical reserve and is ideal for magic users." Rias continued to explain. "However, I'll skip that. Akeno."

"Yes, Buchou." Akeno said as she walked up to the beaten devil, Koneko stepping away. She lifted up her right hand to the sky. "Descend!" She commanded.

Black lighting struck down on the stray, making her scream and writhe in agony. She looked like she wanted death better than this torture. But Akeno kept it up, licking her middle finger sensually, like she was in ecstasy.

"Akeno is the Queen, a combination of all three. This piece is used on the most powerful of the lot, as it has high potential. Like Akeno's thunder can char anybody to ashes. Oh, and get used her acting like that. She is a sadist." Ise gulped.

As everybody watched Akeno fry the devil, their guards down, Ise suddenly sensed a menacing presence behind them.

"Watch out!" He pushed Rias and Raynare away as a huge hammer fell on them. He got thrown away to the dark parts of the structure by the brute force.

"Hiya fleas, name's Kanis. I am the Queen." In front of them was standing a huge man, nearly eight foot, with a huge crude hammer that he just swung at them.

"But we were only informed of one stray." Rias said in an astonished tone.

Akeno had turned the other one to a scorch mark on the ground by then and got in a battle stance along with everyone else.

"Oh? Guess you can blame your informant for your death then." Rumbled the giant as he swung his hammer at Rias, who erected a barrier to defend herself. However, it proved to be unnecessary.

Just before impact, the hammer was blocked by Ise's fist. He looked a bit roughed up, but overall he was fine.

"Ise!" Akeno said in amazement as he simply stopped the force like it was nothing. His eyes blazed as he began to release his demonic aura. Her eyes widened as she felt his aura was slightly greater than before. "He's mine." He said in a voice that made her feel a bit scared.

"Let's dance." Ise jumped back as the giant retracted his hammer and swung it again. The giant kept swinging it like a madman, his movements making the ground shake. But Ise just moved away right before right before impact. The giant was undoubtedly stronger, but Ise had the upper hand due to his speed and technique. He looked like he wasn't the least bit tired, while the giant began to get exhausted. _He's using the same tactic he used on the fallen._ Rias realized. Suddenly Ise grabbed the hammer with his left as it was swung at him. His demonic aura flared as he broke it with a powerful right cross.

All the while, Kiba and Koneko had their mouths open at the display of agility and sheer power. "W-what is he?" Kiba managed to get out. "My other Rook piece." Rias simply answered as she was focused on the fight as well. Her answer only made his mind get blown away.

"But Lord Lucifer said not to.." Koneko whispered in an urgent tone.

"He was worthy." Came the answer. She gulped and watched the boy face down an opponent she could never hope to beat alone. _No way._ She thought as she saw him just dodge a massive hook from the stray Queen.

Ise, meanwhile had had enough. _Time's up._ He placed his feet apart and took a stance. Raynare's eyes widened as she recognized the familiar divine aura take over. Ise let his weight drop as he lowered himself, using the added weight to deliver a brutal punch to the giant's gut, shooting him across the building. Rias immediately followed up with a sphere of her own, annihilating the giant before he even hit the wall. Everybody sighed in relief as the fight finally ended. They searched the area immediately, but did not find any more threats much to their relief.

After everybody took a moment to calm themselves, Rias spoke up. "Alright, the mission was a success, though I'll personally see to who provided the information." She said the last part with a lot of venom. _Sending us half-cocked like that could have killed us!_ She raged inwards.

Meanwhile, Akeno took a good look at Ise. He looked out of breath and a bit scratched up. "Ise." She softly called.

Ise was lost in his own world. He could still feel adrenaline rushing through his body. _I have to train harder if I'm gonna keep facing monsters like these._ He decided. Akeno's voice brought him to his senses.

"Huh?" He responded.

"You should head home and rest. I'll come by and check on you later." Akeno told him.

"You guys will be okay?" He asked, concerned.

"We'll be fine Ise. Head home." Rias told him with a smile.

"Okay. See you later." He waved as he headed home.

After Ise was gone, Rias turned to her group.

"Koneko, Kiba."

"Yes, Buchou." They responded.

"I order you as your master not to reveal what you have learned today without my permission." Rias said in a serious tone. Their eyes widened as they felt their magic bind themselves. _Rias-sama has never done this before._ Kiba thought.

"Now leave us please." Her smile returned, though not as genuine as usual. They bowed and left.

"Raynare?" Rias asked once the trio was alone.

"It's too early to tell what type of gear he may have. But to take over his demonic aura instead of utilizing it, that means it must be very strong." Raynare responded, deep in thought.

"We need to talk to Ise about this." Akeno concluded.

* * *

 **This is not a filler chapter. Not a filler chapter, you hear me?**

 **Alright, it's a filler chapter.**

 **Anyway, it's still important, as this chapter helped me come to a conclusion about Kiba and Koneko.**

 **No, Kiba does not hate fallen angels. That's why he didn't react when he saw Raynare. I'll come to the why in a much later part.**

 **You may have also noticed they did not get much spotlight. That's because I have found that keeping them in the background makes more sense for the fic. That means Koneko will not be part of Ise's 'harem'. And if you think that this chapter seems like it was done in haste, then that would be correct. It's not named 'Straws Pulled at Random' for nothing.**

 **Another thing, I may not be able to update for a longer time. However, you can expect another chapter after 20 days.**

 **As always, like it or hate it, let me know. REVIEW!**


	5. Get Lucky Pt 1

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 5

Get Lucky Pt. 1

"No way, there is no way that I am ever eating a giant red monster thingie with like hundreds of claws. It looks like it's gonna eat me!" Raynare complained as the two neared the club room.

"Raynare, please don't whine. It just doesn't suit you. Besides, lobsters are quite delic…..." Ise's words died in his mouth as he heard a loud swatting noise. Rias just slapped someone, judging by her furious voice coming from behind the door. Then he heard her struggling.

"Don't touch me! You piece of trash, you think you can molest me as you wish? To abuse me to whims and fancy? I am Rias Gremory, the heiress of the…."

Ise heard no more. His demonic energy flared as he kicked the door down with brute force. The duo found their team inside, and more.

Akeno, Kiba and Koneko were standing to a side of the room. Akeno was scowling, her body sparking out a little. The other two were looking on with obvious fear and detest at what they were watching. They were so absorbed with what was happening before them, they didn't even notice his rather loud entrance.

At the center of the room, a blonde guy, a but older then Rias probably, was struggling with Rias. Both looked like they were not ready to give in. He kicked her out her legs from underneath her however, and as she fell his hand swooped down and grabbed her throat, throwing her away to the nearby wall. She crashed against it violently, cracks forming at the impact.

"Rias!" Raynare screamed as she lunged for her friend. Akeno ran to help as well. Ise however, was fuming.

He rushed forward with his right fist reared back, aimed at the blonde turned back. Just before he could strike, a cold voice stopped him cold.

"Stop!"

Both Ise and blonde looked at the owner of the voice. A beautiful woman appearing to be in her early twenties, with silver hair and matching eyes. Her hair, which flowed all the way down to her back, featuring a long braid on each side with small blue bows at the ends, while the rest is let down, ending in twin braids. She was in blue french maid outfit, complete with the headband.

Ise felt like he had no ground underneath him, and for a Taurus it was quite the disturbing sensation. Her very presence was resonating power at inhuman levels. The temperature had dropped several degrees, he could see his own breath misting up. He goosebumps ride up his skin with the chills he was getting, literally.

"Grayfia Lucifuge." The blonde bowed his head slightly, and she returned it with a nod of acknowledgment.

She turned to where the ass had thrown Rias. She looked like she was in a bit of pain, but other than that she had no serious injuries on her. Akeno and Raynare were fussing over her. Ise saw Raynare trying to heal her using Twilight Healing, but Rias stopped her before she could summon the rings. Instead Akeno began to heal with her demonic energy. Raynare looked a bit hurt by the action, but he had his focus moved to the maid again as she narrowed her eyes at the blonde.

"Riser Phenex. Third son of the Phenex Clan. I see your brash nature has not yet been curbed."

"She was not obeying to my commands." He shrugged. Ise clenched his fists at his response, but he could see Rias pleading him with her eyes. _Do not interfere._ He got the message and relented. _She wouldn't hold me back without reason._

Grayfia did not reply, instead she looked at Rias. "Are you in condition to hold a conversation?" Rias nodded in response.

As Rias sat on the couch assisted by Akeno and Raynare following behind, the maid snapped her fingers. In the blink of an eye, the room was back to it's previous form. There were no signs of any damage. Kiba and Koneko stood behind the couch, with their heads bowed. Riser took a seat on the Coach opposite them. Grayfia stood in the middle of the two, her eyes observing both sides. Ise mentally shrugged and took a stand opposite her. She cocked an eyebrow at him, but did not say anything.

A minute of silence passed. Rias looked tense, the blonde had a smirk on his face. Finally he broke the silence.

"Oh poor Rias. Did I hurt you? I'm sorry my dear." Mockery dripped from his tone. Rias glared at him.

"I am not that easy to take down Riser. And, before you say anything. I will not marry you. My decision stands." Ise's eyebrows went up. _She's supposed to get married?_

"You are not in a position to decide. It has been decided amongst the clan heads, and it is absolute. Besides, you know how important it is that pureblood line continues." He said in a cold voice.

"I don't care. I am the future heir of the Gremory clan, and I will decide who I marry. If I must marry, then it will be with a man of my choice. Not with some snobbish grilled chicken like yourself!" Riser fumed at the insult.

"How dare you! I am Riser Phenex, son of the Phenex clan! I own you little bitch, and the sooner as you understand that, the better for you." Before he could say more, he felt a demonic aura erupt to existence beside him. Smaller to his own, yet it felt so violent that he had to pause.

"You will not insult Rias." Ise said in a calm voice as he stood beside Rias's couch. Riser looked up at him with disdain, then turned to Rias.

"Does your servant not know any manners? He threatens me, and calls his master by name? That goes to show how untamed they are." Riser jibed. Ise's eyes narrowed at his words, but Rias shot a reply back as he was about to speak up.

"Ise is not my servant! He is my friend, and he has the right to talk to me as he wishes to." She glared at him. Ise couldn't help but smile a bit at her response.

"Hahaha! Oh Satan!" Riser burst into a mocking laughter. "Her friend she says. Look at you! Now you're making friends with lowly devil servants, what's next? You'll….."

"Enough!" Grayfia's icy voice silenced the room. "Lord Gremory had anticipated this situation." She sighed. "He has presented a solution to this problem, and Lord Phenex agrees as well. There will be a rating game held between both parties, and the winner gets to either force or break the marriage."

"But why?" Riser scowled at her. "I think I have dallied enough! I will not waste any more time behind this farce!"

"Silence! It has been agreed upon by both Lords, and you shall comply." She glared at her, and he actually flinched. "As the strongest Queen says." He said bowing to her. "I accept. Let's get stated right away then."

"What?" Rias asked, startled.

"What?" He said with a mocking smile. "Does the little weak princess need a break? Well then, how about I give you day to recover? Then you can try and all you want and lose. It's only fair."

"But..." Rias tried to protest.

"The Lords did not say that when we must hold the rating game. The sooner the better I say. Right, Rias?" His smirk told how this would go down.

Judging by how Rias paled, Ise knew that this was basically a setup for failure. _We'll lose._ He realized as he looked his friends. As confident as he felt in his own combat prowess, he had seen a lot of weird shit so far. So he judged from their paling expressions that what they had might not be enough. _What now?_ He racked his a way, anything that he could say or do to turn the tide to their favor. However, Akeno spoke up before he could.

"You really are a coward." She smirked back the blonde. Making him flare up. Literally.

"What did you say, bitch!" He spat with fire in his eyes. Yes, literal fire. His body was soon covered in a burning aura. _And here's the weird shit._ Ise couldn't help but think. Akeno didn't give him any ground though.

"Guess you're deaf. But who wouldn't be? Hearing you prattle on like a proud narcissistic peacock would turn anybody deaf."

"Why you..."

"What? Deny that you are a coward. Or why else would to want to fight now, when you have harmed our King and she is weakened. Is it that you think that you can't take us on at our our best? You pretend that you could beat us without breaking a sweat, then prove it!" She challenged with a smirk.

"Fine! Rias, your team gets a damn month to prepare. You better be ready then, little princess. Because, you are doing nothing but delaying the inevitable." Riser spat as he restrained his aura at Grayfia's glare.

Rias looked like she wanted to retort, but she held back as Akeno placed a subtle hand on her.

"I accept." She said, getting a confident smirk in return. Riser got up and walked to the center of the room, ready to leave. Suddenly he stopped, and looked them all over.

"Is this your whole peerage?"

"Yes?" Rias half asked.

"Then you will never win." He said as he snapped his fingers. Behind him, fifteen beautiful girls appeared, all taking stances instantly. Ise felt their aura, it did not look good. _They are seasoned fighters._ He deduced from their positions. He gave them that damned smirk again as he spoke.

"I have a full peerage Gremory. And they are experienced, unlike yours. Prepare yourself for humiliation, for I will not have mercy." He turned. "And oh. I might go easy if you forfeit. That would be sensible." With that, he vanished, a bright fiery circle lighting up underneath him.

"The nerves of him." Grayfia sighed as he left along with his peerage. Then she turned to Rias and offered her a kind smile.

"Hello Rias."

"Hello, Grayfia." Rias responded in a bit dull tone. Grayfia frowned a bit.

"Your oni-sama tried his best, but he….."

"I know, he doesn't have the authority to intrude on clan matters. You guys tried, and I'm happy for that." Rias tried to smile back at her, but failed. "It doesn't really help matters though. By the way, thanks Akeno. If you hadn't spoken out like that, we'd be in deep trouble right now."

"I got lucky. Guessed an egotistic ass would fall for that." She grinned.

"And thank you as well." She smiled at Ise. He smiled back in response.

"Now that you have a month," Grayfia caught everyone's attention. "You should use the time wisely. Train and plan. This time should be long enough for you to at least have a shot at defeating his peerage."

"Thank you Grayfia, we will." Rias replied in a serious tone.

"Your father set this up because he thought you have no chance of escaping this marriage. Lord Phenex thought that your defeat would make you subservient." She eyed them all. "Prove them wrong."

"We will, Grafiya-sama." Akeno promised.

"I must take my leave. Pack up and head to our vacation house on the mountain by tomorrow." She instructed before she vanished in flash of neon blue.

Everybody stayed silent for a while, trying to to come to grips with the current situation they were in.

"Now what?" Ise broke the silence.

"Now" Rias looked at him with resolve. "we plan."

* * *

 **Phew, man. I have to tell you guys, it feels good to be writing, not on exam papers to boot. Especially last week felt like hell.**

 **Chapter might feel a bit short, and a bit messy, but today was my last exam so I couldn't write any more. Don't worry, part two will follow up just about four days later.**

 **Till then, love it? Hate it? Let me know. REVIEW!**


	6. Get Lucky Pt2

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 6

Get Lucky Pt. 2

The next twenty minutes were spent in Rias explaining the situation, and what a rating game is to both Ise and Raynare, Akeno pitching in time to time. By the time they finished, Raynare was pensive, Ise was pissed off.

"You mean to say, the Lords of both pillars just set it up? Without caring for your opinion, or the fact that Riser is a shitty piece of fried turkey?" His voice was deadly calm.

Rias instinctively gulped at his tone. "I-It's far more common than you think. I mean, with all the number of 'turned' devils we are doing pretty much okay, but the number of purebloods are really low in comparison. Plus, both pillars would get serious advantages with this, at least from their point of…..."

"That does not make this okay!" Ise erupted. He was shaking with rage. _They're toying with her life like it doesn't matter and she's fine with it? Bullshit!_

"Ise they are a bit backdated when it comes to…." Rias tried to reason albeit weakly.

"My family is backdated as well! Before my parents, every marriage that took place was arranged. It was an unbreakable law of sorts, and I understand why it was necessary. But I don't think that there is one instance where a lady of our house was forced to marry an asshole with a superiority complex." Ise spat. "Especially with one who has a fetish for his barely legal sister!"

"I would have to marry whoever my clan Lord chooses. It is what's expected of me and I would do it too." Rias sighed. "I can't exactly think selfishly when I could benefit my clan with a proper marriage. But I thought my parents cared about me, you know? I hoped that whoever I was engaged would be a decent person who I may grow to love one day."

"But nope, it had to be Riser." Akeno said in a disgusted tone. "A perfect example of a pedophile incestuous bastard."

Ise was a bit shocked at Rias's words. _She'd actually throw her life away like that?_ "Look Rias, I know….." He was interrupted before he could finish.

"That was how I thought before. Now, I can't help but feel as if all this is just an unnecessary facade, a lie about unity. A family takes care of its members right? Then why am I being used like a plaything or a bargaining chip? Ugh." Rias threw up her hands in exasperation. "I don't really care anymore. If they don't give a damn, then I won't either." Ise noticed both Koneko and Kiba grimace at her declaration, but chose to remain quiet.

"What I don't get," Raynare wondered. "is why you didn't tell us about this earlier."

"Because the marriage was supposed to take place at least six years later. It was not an immediate concern. Also I had plans in place to get out of it. Probably why they pushed the date forward."

"And now they made sure she has no choice left by allowing a rating game. Riser has the unfair and obvious advantage." Akeno stated.

"But it helps that Akeno managed to get us a month of training time." Raynare commented, Akeno gave her a cheeky grin.

"We have no time to waste then. Even with one straight month of training, our best expectation can be an even match between us. We have to get started by tomorrow." Rias summed up, looking at Ise.

"Don't worry about me." Ise assured. "I have a tournament coming up after this month. I usually take a month off to train intensively in the mountains. But I'm sure I can squeeze out an extra month if I tell my ma."

"I don't want you to do this if don't want to. And there is your ma's opinion to consider." Rias said in soft tone.

"You're my friend Rias. You've saved my life, I can do this much to return it. And, don't worry about ma. She'll agree." _Probably._ He gave her a reassuring smile.

Suddenly Akeno paled. "Umm Rias, didn't Grayfia just come in?"

"Yes?" Rias responded in a confused tone, then paled in realization as well. _She saw Ise._ _She's bound to tell him._

"Who was she anyway?" Ise asked in a confused tone.

"She was Grayfia Lucifuge, the strongest devil Queen in the current underworld and personal assistant to the current Lucifer. She possesses the power of Cryokinesis. The power to basically freeze the entire Kuoh town if she so wished." Raynare answered.

 _Yeap, based on the chills I got my survival instincts reached the same conclusion._ Ise thought.

"And also my sister-in-law." Rias stated. "But that doesn't matter now. It's late, and we should leave. We'll meet up here after 10 am tomorrow." She finished a bit hastily. Ise noticed his friends were busy in their own worlds, so he decided to head home.

"Wait." Rias's voice broke his pace.

She looked at both Raynare and Ise. "I'm sorry."

Before either of them could say anything she forged on. "I'm sorry Raynare that I refused to let you heal me." She said as she turned to face her. "I kinda feared this would end up in a rating game."

"You didn't want Riser to know what powers I have." Raynare finished for her, realization dawning on her. "In that case, it was a wise move." Rias frowned at the response.

"But I hurt you emotionally."

"It's okay. You didn't mean to." Raynare gave her a soft smile.

"Thank you." Relieved, she turned to him. She tried to look him in the eyes, but couldn't quite do it.

"Ise, I let Riser humiliate you and push you around. You tried to help me and Akeno as well, and I didn't let you fight back or retort. Please forgive me." She bowed a bit, waiting for his response.

 _It isn't easy for her._ Ise thought as he looked at his friend. _To handle it all, it's too much. And she's afraid she'll lose us because of her actions._ So, instead of saying anything else, he reached out and gave her a hug.

For a moment, Rias became stiff. Then she began to shake and shiver a little. Ise could feel his shoulder get damp with her tears. He didn't say anything, he just held her a bit closer. Rias clung to him like a drowning man at a straw. Suddenly, he felt two more pairs of hands wrap around them in a comforting embrace.

 _Thanks, Akeno, Raynare._

After a bit, they all let go. Rias smiled at Ise while wiping her eyes. "Thank you. I needed that."

Ise shrugged his shoulders. "It's what my ma does when I feel a bit sad."

The room fell silent again, and Ise coughed. "I better go."

"See you later." The girls waved. And with that, Ise left.

"He's a wonderful person, isn't he?" Akeno said as she watched him walk away.

"He is." Rias confirmed.

{} {} {}

The next day, Ise excused himself for training from his ma. She agreed, but on the usual condition. _Don't overdo it._ He had to take his camping set with him to keep up the he met up with the others in the clubroom Rias and Akeno teleported them at a mountain base.

"We're here." Rias announced. "The house reserved for us is over there." She pointed to a high ground about half a mile away. "I thought it would be a good exercise for us to walk over to the top."

Everybody agreed on her proposition, though Raynare pouted a bit. Ise noticed that while his friends did not carry anything much with them like him, Kiba and Koneko were carrying two heavy bags with them. Koneko's one was massive in size, and was impossible for someone like her to carry.

 _Well, she is a Rook._ Ise mused. "They need the training." Rias told him.

After an hour of walking and whining form Raynare later, they had finally reached their destination.

"Whoa." Was all Ise could say as he looked at the impressive mansion. It was surrounded by a well-maintained garden. There was a huge fountain by the side, benches to sit nearby. It was a really impressive sight.

"My brother's." Rias said in a faraway voice, as if she was reminiscing. "We come here on vacation every year."

"Anyway," She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "everybody go in and set yourselves up. In two hours, we will begin our training. And Akeno, Raynare? Could you please make it to my room in one hour?"

"Sure." Akeno responded. Raynare gave a nod as she was taking in the scenery.

Rias watched as Ise headed in the mansion. _Best get started._ She thought.

{} {} {}

An hour later, Akeno and Raynare were seated comfortably in Rias's room.

"We need to inform Ise about his sacred gear." Rias began.

"I agree." Akeno seconded her opinion.

"I know, but I still haven't figured what his sacred gear is." Raynare frowned.

"But can't you tell by the incidents when he triggered it? I have a basic idea about them, but you are the expert after all." Rias asked.

"Can you?" Raynare questioned back. "Sacred gears do not emit any type of divine aura, unless they are one of three true sacred gears. Ordo Nihil."

"You mean the Cross, Grail and Spear?" Akeno interrupted.

"Yes, and whatever his gear is, I can guarantee that it is not any of those. The aura may be divine in nature, but it's different. It's almost the same….." She trailed off.

"As being in the presence of an unstoppable force." Rias finished for her, remembering Ise's fight with the rouge Queen.

"An accurate description." Raynare stood up and began pacing, her brows furrowed. "As a fallen angel, at least when I was," She corrected herself. "I should have felt a calming aura emanating from him if he was the possessor of one. It's more obvious because his sacred gear called itself the 'Sacred Bull'."

The trio fell in silence as Raynare kept pacing.

"However, it must be very powerful. Ise has a strong demonic aura for a new devil. I might say even more volatile than my own demonic aura if nothing else. For me, my holy side is too powerful to be overlapped by my pieces. Right?" She looked at Rias.

"That would be the case." Rias confirmed.

"But we saw Ise's gear literally dominate his demonic aura." Akeno pointed out.

"Yes, that means his gear is probably at least an Ordo Quinque gear. And since it does not match the description" Raynare said in a somber tone.

"That's great?" Rias half-said half-asked at her friend's tone.

"Not really. Not all high order sacred gears are good for the user. Remember the sacred gear Gyrus Vortex? An Ordo Tres sacred gear." Raynare said in a worried tone.

"It gives its possessor great telekinetic abilities, to the point that they can bend space at their balance breaker state." Rias frowned as she tried to remember more.

"At the cost of causing a user schizophrenia when activated." She filled in.

"You're afraid that his sacred gear might have some sort of backlash." Akeno finished for her.

"Yes, I am. But we cannot let Ise stay in the dark about this matter. It's a part of him." Raynare told her.

"Then we let him decide. Whatever he chooses, it's his life. But Raynare, I don't want my one of my best friends to perish. Please do what you can to help him." Rias pleaded her. She nodded back at her.

"We better prepare a plan for the training. Time's not going backwards." Akeno reminded them, with a wry smile. She was worried about Ise as well, but had to take her friends minds off the grave issue.

"Right." With that, Rias began discussing her plans with the two.

{} {} {}

After two hours, the whole group gathered in the gym/basement.

"Alright, we have about a month to train and we" Rias pointed to Akeno and Raynare. "have come up with a schedule of sorts." "I think we need discuss a few things before we get to that." She paused for effect. "I first want everyone to have a clear idea of exactly who we are facing."

"Our enemy is Riser Phenex. While he may not be the strongest devil in existence, he is a tough opponent."

 _No shit._ Ise thought as he remembered Riser setting himself on fire back in the club room.

"As a Phenex, he has not only great control over fire, like the mythical Phoenix, he and any of his family members" Ise could guess who she was referring to. "possess the power to rise from the ashes." Seeing Ise's confused expression, she sighed. "I mean they can regenerate from any physical wounds."

 _Okay, shit._ Ise internally cursed. "That is why," Rias explained. "he has won eight out of the ten rating games he has taken part in. The two he lost purposefully for his own gains."

"A King that does not die can not lose the game." Raynare commented. "No matter how weak or strong he is."

"But." Ise had an epiphany. "Rias just said he can recover from any physical damage. What about his stamina? Or the fact that he could be mentally cowed into losing?"

"Excellent observation, Ise." Akeno smiled at her friend. "While it is true that Riser may be invulnerable physically, there is nothing stopping us from tiring him out or tormenting him mentally." She licked her lips and Ise rolled his eyes. _I bet you like the torment part don't you?_

"Yes, that and the fact that like every devil, he is weak to anything of holy nature." Rias said, pointing at Raynare. "Having the powers of a fallen, she can effectively cripple him if given the chance." And then she pointed back to Ise.

"And you, Ise have the potential to dominate his pieces. Being a Rook, and a seasoned fighter to boot, you have the potential to grant Raynare and I the window we need." Akeno nodded along.

"You two are the wild cards in this match. While Riser has a good idea about each of us." Akeno pointed to Rias and the rest of the peerage. "He has no idea about the two of you. You are going to be our only chances of winning this match." Raynare and Ise tensed in response, eyes shining with determination.

"So this one month we will work on playing to our strengths. For that, I will point out each of our abilities and limitations." Then she pointed at herself.

"As the Gremory heiress, I possess a higher raw demonic power than others. Think of it like water in a container. While other devils start off with a small glass full of it, I get a full jug." She explained for Ise's benefit. "However, my more dominant trait comes from my mother's side. My mother is a Bael, and from her side I have gained the power of destruction." She casually held up her right hand and conjured a dark red sphere. It looked….volatile. _And dangerous._ Ise remembered the devastating effect it had on her enemies.

"I can simply wipe something out of existence if I have sufficient power to do so. And there is my weakness." She stated as she vanished the orb. "I am not powerful enough to wipe out Riser in one shot. And the fact that he should be able to dodge my attacks don't help either."

"In my case," Akeno began. "I am great at magic, specifically lightning based magic. Being the Queen I also carry traits of all the pieces. However, I cannot utilize my advantage perfectly." She sighed. "I am an absolute loser if it comes to close quarters combat. And my more powerful lightning attacks take time to charge up."

"I may be a fallen and have a working knowledge of the supernatural." Raynare said, making both Rias and Akeno cough. "Fine." She scowled at them. "I'm the living library of all things creepy, happy? Now, as I was saying, I possess raw magical power like Rias, even more due to my pieces, and am somewhat proficient in magic. But it is all defensive in nature."

"Kiba." The blonde looked up at Rias. "You are the best knight I could hope for." Her words brought a smile on his face, but he stood as if prepared to hear some harsh words. "However, while your swordsmanship is unquestionable, and your speed impressive, your defense and endurance is still subpar. Vice versa for Koneko." Rias looked at the emotionless girl, who just gave a shrug in response.

"Ise." He looked at Akeno to hear their evaluation. "I think trying to tell you your strengths is kinda pointless." He couldn't help but snort. "However, you do have some areas to improve on. You are new to this world of creepy, as Raynare so eloquently called it." Rias chuckled at her words while Raynare huffed. "So you lack the basic knowledge needed, you aren't experienced in dealing with the threats we do commonly. And, most importantly, you aren't used to your demonic side yet. Only time and effort can cover that. And we,' Here she pointed at all of them. "will help you along."

"We will all do our separate training." Rias began. "But we will also take time to help another, fight another or teach another. Now that you know how to improve yourselves, you will focus on those areas. At the end of our time here, we will practice various strategies or team-ups we can execute on our opponents."

"As for today," Akeno took the lead. "We will simply provide a demonstration of sorts. To allow everyone to be more aware of their teammate's capabilities."

"Let's begin." Raynare clapped her hands in enthusiasm.

{} {} {}

That Ise was gobsmacked would be quite the understatement, given that his jaw had dropped every time he saw his teammates in action.

Apparently It was a custom for devils to restrict their power when in human world, up to a certain age or till their first rating game. Not everybody followed it, of course. But Rias did.

And now that she had removed everyone's limits, they shocked him beyond his comprehension.

Rias simply made a whole mountain vanish with her orb of destruction, as she liked to call it. And while it took her some time to charge up, she didn't even break a sweat.

Akeno was really worthy of her title as the Priestess of Thunder. Like Rias, her powerful attacks took some time, but the scorch marks and craters she left as evidence made Ise shiver a bit in fear. Later, his two friends demonstrated the various forms of offensive or constructive magic they could do. Akeno looked more knowledgeable while Rias was the more powerful one.

Kiba was fast, faster than before. He whizzed past Ise and he could barely detect the guy. Koneko proved that size didn't matter by smashing a five ton boulder with her bare fist.

Unfortunately for him and Raynare, they were not restricted as they were new additions. Raynare still managed impress everyone with her complex array of defensive and constructive magic. She actually manged to take a full powered hit from Akeno with her shields up. She tried a bit of offense, but it simply proved she knew the theory, but needed practice. She looked barely exhausted by the time she finished, and that was a huge plus in Ise's book.

However, Ise didn't feel that great when he thought about himself. _I don't have any powers like these guys do. And if these guys say they can't beat this Riser….._ He felt small, and he hated it.

"Ise." Rias waved him over. "Since you do your best when your up against an opponent, how about Akeno or me against you? Your pick." Ise just gave her an incredulous look, and Akeno facepalmed.

"Like he'll even dream of scratching us. Kiba, Koneko, anybody wanna spar this guy?" Akeno said, exasperated.

Kiba looked a bit conflicted, and he dropped his hand as he was about to raise it. _Maybe_ _he_ _do_ _es_ _n't think I can keep up._ Ise thought, but in reality he was wary, remembering his last fight. Koneko however, simply marched up to him.

"Alright, Ise. It's you versus Koneko. Ready? On my mark." Ise gave a nod and took a deep breath. Before he could go into a stance however, he doubled over in pain as Koneko's fist connected with his stomach.

"Listen you piece of shit." She hissed at him. "I know you're strong and probably very very proud of yourself. You took the Queen out, good. But you aren't good enough and if Mistress loses, I'll be going after your mother, unders….."

Her eyes widened in surprise as she suddenly his aura flared out. Before she could even blink she felt his fist slam into her. She doubled over in pain, and was flung across the place by Ise's kick. She tried to get up, but winced in pain as she clutched her ribs. _Fuck, he broke them._ She cursed inward.

Koneko made another attempt to get up, but froze as she sensed him. She was well attuned to sensing aura. _It's wrong, like it's.._ She shivered in fear before she could even finish her thought. If she was unsettled by Issei Hyoudou before, now she was downright terrified.

And there he stood, eyes blazing. Koneko saw him get ready to rush her, and at that moment, his aura doubled, turning more dark than ever. She could have sworn she felt the ground beneath her overflowing with his power, just as he began charging forward.

Despite the pain, Koneko got up on shaky legs, trying to dodge the lethal fist coming her way. But it felt as if she was rooted to her spot. She closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable.

"Ise, stop!" She felt his fist stop inches before impact, and sighed with relief. When she she opened her eyes she saw Raynare and Kiba rushing at her, concerned.

"Ise!" Rias nearly screamed. "Why did you attack Koneko like that?" Ise simply gave her a cold stare.

"Ask her." He said in an icy voice, then walked off.

Rias was about to call her friend back, but Akeno put an arm on her shoulders.

"It wasn't his fault."

"But he just hit…."

"Koneko threatened to attack Ise's mother if we lose the rating game." Akeno whispered glaring at Koneko's direction, making Rias' eyes widen in surprise.

 _How dare she!_ Rias fumed.

"Rias, I'll handle things here. You go after Ise." Rias looked uncertain, but her Queen smiled wryly.

"Go talk to him. Tell him we're sorry." Rias nodded and made to leave, but Akeno hadn't let go.

"And don't hide anything. I don't think he'll appreciate the sugarcoated version."

"K." With that, she left.

Akeno sighed as she turned around. Koneko was being fussed over by a concerned Kiba and a confused Raynare. While her friend looked like she wanted to check on Ise, she couldn't help tending to Koneko's injury.

As Akeno headed towards the group, her eyes narrowed into slits in anger. She walked up to Koneko, and ignoring Raynare's cry, slapped her so hard that her face turned with the massive force.

"How dare you!" She saw Raynare open her mouth but held up her hand.

"I did it for Mistress' sake." Koneko muttered. "The boy needed a reality check."

Akeno slapped her again. The sound made the two behind her wince.

"And did I, or for that matter your Mistress, say you were allowed to such a thing?" Koneko remained silent.

"You think you threatened Ise's mother, and it won't cost you." She heard a gasp behind her but ignored it. "Well, congrats. You just made an enemy even I wouldn't dare make." Koneko looked at her with wide eyes at the statement. Akeno turned her back on the Rook.

"His ma has been nothing short of kind and loving even, towards us." She turned back, eyes blazing at the fearful girl.

"You dare to think of attacking her again, then be sure Ise won't be the only one coming after you."

Meanwhile, Raynare had managed to turn her face to an impressive shade of angry red. She was about to rip the Rook a new one, but Akeno stopped her.

"Don't." Raynare glared at her, but stopped before she could blast the girl to oblivion.

Akeno waved a hand at Koneko, her magic flaring up. Koneko grimaced, but wisely kept silent.

"There, now she'll heal, but by her own power. It'll take longer and will leave her winded. Unfortunately, we need her, or else." Akeno glared at her again, making the girl shrink away in fear.

Raynare didn't look happy but she nodded. "Rias has gone after Ise then?" Akeno gave a nod.

"Good."

After that, Akeno commanded Kiba to take the Rook to her room. _Oh Satan._ She cursed as she rubbed her forehead tiredly.

{} {} {}

"Ise." Rias called behind her friend as she ran. They were deep in the forest, Ise striding to nowhere.

"What?" Ise asked in a bit cold voice.

"Look, I'm sorry that Koneko acted that way. She generally ignores everything, I have no idea why she decided threatening you would be a good idea."

Ise stopped, allowing her to catch up. She noticed he had his fists clenched. After a while, he took a deep breath and relaxed his posture.

"She threatened my ma."

"I know, and I'm ashamed that she attempt something so low." Rias placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I won't let her get hurt Ise, I promise." Ise grasped her hand with his and gave her a small smile.

"I know you won't." Rias felt her heart flutter at his smile, but pushed the feeling down. _Later._ She told herself.

"Koneko and Kiba are quite different, you know." Ise simply looked at her. "Their stories are their own to tell, but I think I'll be safe in saying that both were in horrible conditions before I found them." He frowned.

"Koneko is very loyal to me for saving her life. She'd probably die before she lets me get harmed." She stared back at him. "But it does not excuse her actions. Threatening my friend's mother will not be tolerated."

"Drop it, Rias." Ise smiled at her.

"What?"

"I know she threatened my ma, and believe me I'm not happy about it. But she did it cause I am an unknown, and she is scared for you. I don't like it, but I understand. So let it slide, for now." Rias didn't look very happy.

"Unfortunately, Ise that's how things run in the underworld. Devils may not be as malicious and diabolic as they used to be, but they aren't the nicest ones either. You're going to face many things like this in the future before you actually make a name for yourself. So just dropping it won't help."

"That's okay. I got you, Akeno, Raynare. Long as I have you three I don't think it'll matter." Ise said, oblivious to the blush on Rias' cheeks.

"Anyway," Rias coughed. "I have something to tell you." With that, she launched into an in depth discussion about Ise's abilities.

"So I have a sacred gear, huh?" Ise asked as he sat down on the grass. He motioned Rias to do the same, and she gladly complied.

"That much is sure. But even Raynare can't tell whether it would be safe for you to use it or not. So it's up to you."

Ise sat there, immersed in his thoughts. _I know that this may be dangerous, but if I have to reach my goals, then I'll need all the help I can get. But…_ He looked at Rias' worried face. _I can see that they don't want me to._ After a while he responded, careful not hurt his friend.

"I know you girls don't want me to use my sacred gear, but Rias, think about it. Honestly, the way you described Riser and team won't be a pushover. We'll need all the help we can get."

"But Ise..." Rias protested.

"I'll need all I have to reach my goals, Rias. And from what I have heard from you it won't be forgiving if I fall. I'd rather deal with a chance of getting fucked than a guaranteed fuck up later. Ow! What was that for?" Ise complained as he rubbed his bruised cheek. Rias had pinched his cheek, hard.

"I don't think your ma would appreciate the language." Ise had the decency to look ashamed as Rias glared at him.

"But you're right. You'll need all you can get." Rias sighed. "I just hope you'll be careful."

"Don't worry. I will only work on it when you three are around." Ise said, making her smile.

"But really? You're serious that it's named 'Sacred Bull'? Kinda funny if you ask me." He mused.

"I know." Rias agreed, finding the name as a very weird coincidence.

"But you know what strikes me as the most weird part about sacred gears? The fact that they yell out their names and such when they are used."

"That's because God was such a big fan of cartoons." Ise gave Rias an are-you-kidding-me look as she sighed. "Yup. According to Raynare, God was fascinated with the human imagination. He used to say that cartoons were the ultimate proof of their ingeniousness. So maybe since He made the gears for humans, He put the overly loud proclamations used in cartoons in them."

"That's ridiculous! What kind of a creator does that?" Ise asked loudly, still not believing what he just heard.

"The kind that was always a kid at heart." Answered Raynare's voice from behind them. They looked behind to find their other two friends walking towards them. Ise smiled and scooted over, making space for them to sit down.

"God was really complicated." Raynare spoke after taking a seat. "He was a real softie, a kid delighted at the smallest things He could spot. He found happiness in that of His creations, He reveled in their progress. He cried tears of joy when a new life was born. He never really got used to that. He kept saying that He wouldn't want to lose that feeling of delight each time He saw a new life take place under His creation. His love for us truly knew no bounds." Her friends had awestruck expressions on their faces at her description.

"But that was what I heard from my elder angels. I was created right before the great war had begun, and God had become very different from their descriptions. He was still very kind." Raynare said, a touch of sadness in her tone. "But He was harsh, He had to be for the war. He reinforced the rules on all of creation, especially on us. So many fell back then." A lone tear rolled off her cheek.

"Right before I fell, He had changed so much I could not find the creator in Him any more. He felt more like a destroyer, a force that was ready to wipe out anything that came in His way." She ignored the tears blurring her vision. "Whenever an angel would fall, He would look disappointed. When I fell.." She choked up. "When I fell, He looked so sad. Like He had known it would happen, He did know. But as if He had hoped it was not necessary." She felt Ise's arms around her shoulder, and she drew comfort from them.

"I know He's not really here anymore, but I sometimes get this feeling that He's there, you know? As if.." She couldn't finish her words.

Ise softly embraced her from behind, his other friends drawing closer to offer support. They stayed like that for a while, till Ise decided to break the oppressive atmosphere with his question.

"I know that the war you talk about was pretty big and all, but isn't Both God and Satan's death supposed to be a big deal? I mean, yeah everyone could know about it, but then without God and Satan, Christianity falls to the ground. Plus, even Asia didn't….."He trailed off once he realized what he just blurted out. _Damn me and my big mouth._ Ise saw his friend's moods fall even lower. Raynare still gave him an it's-okay sort of look, expecting the question.

"Which is why it's a very well guarded secret. Which means, we" Akeno mock glared at Rias, who had the decency to blush. "should have warned you not to tell anybody."

"But you guys just told me about it like it was no big deal." Ise cautiously replied not wanting to sadden them even further.

"Really, from the devil's viewpoint it would be totally unimportant to us if God dies or not. But it is still kept a secret from the younger generation. God's death would make many think they could now attempt a takeover and, there are turned devils among us, though they no longer fall under His realm, it would come a huge shock to their system. We simply run with version that God managed to kill Lucifer but since then has weakened significantly. Since the war he has gone into a state of hibernation of sorts so Micheal manages it all. That's the story even heaven runs with, at least the highest ranks in churches or such are told this. For them, God dying would be a disaster."

"And I know because I was around when the war began." Raynare joined in.

"Though we know this because of my brother. He told me and Akeno." Rias stated. "After all our leaders died, other powerful and influential devils left their family name and took over their positions and names to rule over the devils as a unified council. My brother took over as Lucifer, the council head." She noticed the shock on Ise's face but he was still coherent enough to ask a question.

"Does he care for you?"

"Ise, I know what you're on about. He can't. He may be one of the most influential devils, but even he cannot intervene on a family matter. Each clan's business is their own. Interference is never tolerated. Though my brother may have been a member of our clan before, but when he left, he left against my father's will and there is still no love lost between them. He is doing the best he can. You remember Grayfia?" Ise nodded.

"Your sister-in-law?"

"Yes. Since he cannot directly intervene, he sent her to act as an observant of sorts. Though Akeno may have opened up the opportunity, it is because of her that we now have time to prepare. It's highly unusual, Ise. So anymore from my brother and it can be considered as a violation of law." Seeing that Ise was still doubtful, Akeno looped in.

"Ise, the devil society was, still is deep down a violent one. It's barely held in place by the council. What do you think happens when Sirzechs-sama breaks laws that he approved of? He may love his sister a lot, but his responsibilities must always come first." Ise sighed, accepting the argument. Deciding a topic change was in order, he asked a question back.

"Hey, how's Koneko doing?" Akeno smirked at Raynare.

"Told you he'd ask about her health, not how she was punished." Raynare huffed in response.

"Whatever." Akeno looked at Ise then smiled.

"I'm pretty sure that Rias told you why she may have done it, and you told her to drop it." Ise blinked as her guess hit home. "Uh huh, that's you." Akeno nodded in a fashion that reminded Ise of one of those fake wise monks, but he wisely didn't voice it. "She needed a reality check, otherwise she might pull something like this again. So instead or letting Raynare patch her up, I warped her own magic to heal her. She'll be fine but the drain and duration will leave her winded. That way, she learns her lesson but it's not too much. I think she should think over her actions overnight."

 _I guess that's the best solution._ Ise shrugged.

"So, who's up for dinner? I'm making pasta." Akeno chirped.

{} {} {}

"Alright, Ise" Akeno instructed. "Devil magic is very complex, but at the heart of it all, it is simply based on your imagination. Your imagination and power is your limit. You may learn about many spells and runes and so on, but what defines a true master is that he does it his way." Ise nodded, eager to hear more.

"Raynare isn't here with us this morning because she can still use her holy powers, and angel magic works in a completely different pattern, so she is off training on her own. Rias doesn't need it either." She paused, tapping her right index on her chin, deep in thought.

"Since you're a Rook, you're already lacking in this department. But any magic you may master will be destructive and volatile in nature. So I won't waste time with defense. Maybe a rudimentary shield formation lesson later."

"Now Ise, think of a sphere and focus on it….."

{} {} {}

"Who'd have known?" Akeno shrugged at Rias and Raynare, who were still staring at her, wide-eyed.

"But how can his magic be defensive in nature?" Rias still couldn't believe her Queen.

"It's not exactly defensive in nature." Akeno gave a nervous chuckle. "His shields are quite brittle, but they grow spikes and would explode in your face like a grenade if you manage to break it and he made landmines, freaking landmines! He still has to trigger them manually, but he isn't affected by them if he's a certain distance away."

 _The laws, the freaking magic laws._ Rias thought, shaking her head at the weird stuff of Ise's she had to deal with.

"More along the lines of passive aggressive tactics if you ask me." Raynare commented. "So how much theory did you actually cram in his head to actually make this work."

"That's the crazy bit, Raynare. I didn't teach him anything. He just got lucky, as he put it."

"Come again?" Raynare asked, shocked.

"Yeah, I just told him that imagination is key to devil magic and all." Rias stared dumbly at Akeno's claim. "That's all. I tried to get him to form a basic sphere as I expected his magic to be volatile, but he was struggling so I told him to try on his own. A few minutes later, he started to come up with the stuff I mentioned earlier. He said something about getting ideas from this Green Lamppost thingy.."

"You mean Green Lantern, a hero from a comic, I think." Raynare supplied. When her friends turned to her, she bit back, exasperated. "What? I heard my elder angels talk about it. I mean, what did you expect? I was under God who had a stash of comics and cartoons from the future, hello?"

"Never mind." Rias rubbed her temple. "Akeno, please continue to instruct Ise. Can he yet travel by circle?"

"Not really, but we are working on that. He seems to be really bad at the basics." Akeno couldn't stifle a giggle seeing her friend sigh tiredly.

"If he could then he wouldn't be Ise. I swear, if I didn't know his just wings it all, then I'd think he's pulling my leg or something."

'Where is he now?" Raynare asked.

"In his room, taking a break. His reserves as expected of a Rook, was limited. So any further training is out of question today." Came Akeno's reply.

"Thank Satan for small mercies." Rias sighed again. The other two looked at her weirdly, and she couldn't help remarking. "At leas he's normal in these areas. Try and explain a magically supercharged Rook who's bending the rules of our magic to your Devil King brother and you'd know how I feel right now."

"I can see you trying." Akeno burst out laughing. Raynare just nodded her head at her friends antics.

"So Rook training tomorrow. For now, he can train on his own." Rias decided.

{} {} {}

"Since you're a Rook," Rias began Ise's training the next morning. "You're magic is more passive and it boosts your strength. However, up until now you have been using this strength in a subconscious level. I want you to will it to happen." She then pointed at the various crimson weights around the gym room they were in.

"These are special weights of sorts. They actually don't weight much physically, but if I activate them they will require your devil strength and that alone to lift them. Brute physical strength won't work. Same for the treadmills and such."

"I'm joining you in this exercise because I need some stamina training. Akeno and Raynare will pitch in later." She informed him. "Ready?"

Ise nodded and proceeded to lift a weight that had number 10 written on it. _A good basic unit ti begin with._ He found it quite heavy, but nothing he couldn't deal with.

"Ise!" Rias screamed out and he looked at her in alarm. "Something wrong?"

"But but..." Rias shook herself before she spoke. "It's nothing. Nothing at all." She muttered.

"Oh kay" Ise replied skeptically, the proceeded to train.

 _Maybe I'll go for the 20 later on._ He thought, never realizing the heart attack he might cause his dear friend.

{} {} {}

Half a month had passed since they had arrived, and Ise was very pleased with the progress they were making.

Each day was almost the same. He would get up at four, jog around the area, continue with his own morning routine till Akeno called for breakfast. Then he'd pair up with either Akeno or Rias for magic or Rook training. He hadn't manage to make much progress with his magic, the mines and shields were the best he could come up with. At least the mines were proximity based now. He still sucked at basics.

He was good with the Rook training though. Now, he could breeze through the routine Rias had set up for him at the gym, and could consciously trigger his aura, though he was informed it lacked it's usual 'volatility'.

Raynare joined him from time to time, teaching him the basics on devils. It was more of a history lesson, but for Ise it proved to be interesting. She also tried to see if he could activate his sacred gear, but so far Ise could barely sense it.

Still he was pleased, as all of them had improved by leaps and bounds. The girls even took lessons from him on close quarters combat. They were no masters, but could make a getaway if needed. Just to make sure, Ise taught them all the dirty tricks he knew.

However, he had not spotted Kiba or Koneko much since that event. He suspected that Rias or Akeno ordered them to stay away.

"So." Rias's voice woke him up from his thoughts. "We've come far, but today we'll be solely focusing on speed and dodging. Since neither of us" She pointed at herself and the other two. "are exactly the master in this matter, how about we let Ise run the show for now?"

"How about we open this with a demonstration then?" He smiled.

Half an hour later, his smile was quite strained as he ducked under another of Raynare's bolts. _Maybe this wasn't such a good idea._ Especially when Akeno was involved, Ise promised to never demonstrate anything ever again.

As he was thinking this while leaping away from Rias' sphere. He saw all three aiming for him and gulped. _Oh crikey. Run!_ He tried to dodge, but he found no way out.

Ignoring the oncoming barrage of his doom, he focused his powers and just hoped it would pull him away to another place. Which resulted him flashing away, right behind his friends. The trio of girls yelled in surprise as he arrived behind them.

They started at him for a moment, gobsmacked before Raynare bonked him on the head and marched away. Rias was pinching the bridge of her nose, muttering about some laws or something, while Akeno smiled sweetly at him.

"Ise, how did you manage that?"

"Um, got lucky I guess?" Ise scratched his head in a nervous fashion.

Suffice to say, the rest of his morning was not very pleasant.

{} {} {}

 _Like the legend of the Phoenix  
All ends with beginnings  
What keeps the planets spinning (uh)  
The force from the beginning_

 _We've come too far to give up who we are  
So let's raise the bar and our cups to the stars…._

… _.We're up all night to the sun  
We're up all night to get some  
We're up all night for good fun  
We're up all night to get lucky_

 _We're up all night to get lucky_  
 _We're up all night to get lucky_  
 _We're up all night to get lucky_  
 _We're up all night to get lucky…._

 _Damn them for making me run like that!_ Ise thought as he was laying in his bed, listening to music.

Once the girls had discovered he could burst through short distances, or 'blaze' as they called it, they made sure he could attempt it 'on demand'. He consoled himself thinking that at least it didn't involve lightning, despite Akeno's pouts.

And he still couldn't sleep because of the morning. _Maybe I should get something to read._ He was considering the idea, till another brilliant one popped in to his head.

Half an hour later, his friends were gathered in his room, all looking groggy and kept rubbing their eyes.

"Ise! It's the middle of the night! Why did you have to wake us up?" Rias complained. The other two agreed.

"Well, I had this idea that might help us.." He felt a bit sheepish now that his excitement was somewhat curbed.

"Let's hear it then." Akeno prodded.

"Um devils can't stand holy stuff right? So I had this idea that.."

"Can you please keep it short?" Rias almost whined.

"Sure. Raynare, can you still read the Bible?" The ex-fallen in question blinked at him.

"Um, yea?" Rias and Akeno stared at her, all traces of sleep gone.

"You can?" Rias asked.

"I can. It doesn't provide me with the same comfort it used to anymore though, so I don't read it."

"That's amazing." Akeno whispered. "We don't have many turned fallen, but only two other maybe can read it."

"So that means you can still touch holy water too." He mused. "Can we carry holy water if it's contained in a vial?"

"It should be very uncomfortable, but yes." Akeno confirmed.

"Great." Ise looked at Raynare. "So is it possible for you to record verses with your magic?"

"Um, Ise not to burst your bubble, but any devil would be severely weakened from listening to that, including us." Ise simply waved Rias' concerns away with a smile.

"Hey Akeno." He said a moment later.

"Yeah?"

"What's the range on your lightning?" They girls' instincts cried bloody murder as his smile turned feral.

* * *

 **Before you start to think of alien abductions or death by eating too much cheese, I, to your absolute delight(read horror), am alive. And feeling incredibly stupid.**

 **Why the delay? Because I made plans up to chapter 12, and had written it down on rough scripts of sorts. The very same scripts I threw out while de-cluttering my room. My only excuse is that I was listening to 'Beat It'.**

 **And then I was pissed at myself for my stupidity, yada yada, long story short, I decided to wing it. And it was a bad idea. Hence the delay. Just imagine me burning on a stake and be done with it.**

 **Anyway, I made a few changes of course. The sacred gear system felt too confusing for me, so I decided to use Latin numerals to classify them on a descending order(15 to 0, I guess).**

 **I'll elaborate on Sirzechs' history later if needed. And yes, Riser is a total creep here.** **I think some of you may be disappointed that I didn't elaborate on how Ise's normal training is like, but just you wait.**

 **And oh, a massive apology to** **ghostmarine51. I hope you found your answer in this chapter. I do read all the reviews, I'm just still confused about where this fic** **will** **go, so I try to put the answers in the fic itself when I get the chance.**

 **Next chapter you will get to read the proper recipe of making fried** **turkey** **. Till then,**

 **Love it or hate it, let me know. REVIEW!**


	7. Up in Flames

"Character Speech"

 _Inner thoughts/Lyrics_

'Quote or reference'

 **[Sacred Gear]**

Since this is an AU story, it may have new or changed elements, characters in it. Terms used in the canon may hold different meanings here. In such cases, brief explanations or a character list may be provided at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 7

Up in Flames

 _So it's over  
This time, I know, it's gone  
Salt water  
You tasted it too long  
I only know one role  
Now I know it's gone_

 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_

 _We have slowly gone_

 _So it's over_  
 _This time, you're flyin' home_  
 _This time, I know no song_  
 _Can't stop it slowly go_  
 _Can't stop it slowly go_

 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_

 _We have slowly gone_

 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_  
 _Up in flames_

 _We have slowly gone_  
 _Oh, we have slowly gone_

 _Could we pour some water on?_

"Ise?" Ise shook himself off his thoughts at Rias' voice.

"Busy?" She asked again, leaning on his doorway. She was wearing a long blue nightgown of sorts, Ise couldn't tell.

"Not really. Just listening to some songs." He quickly said. "Come on in."

"Okay." Rias sat beside him on the bed, and looked out the window. "The stars are shining bright tonight, aren't they?" She said in wonder.

"They are." He agreed. _They do look quite amazing._

"Having trouble sleeping?" He asked a moment later.

"Same as you." She almost whispered, still engrossed with the night sky.

Ise looked at his friend. To him, and perhaps everyone who knew her, Rias was always the regal and proper one. Perfect manners, perfect everything. And Ise couldn't think her otherwise. Yet she managed to look breathtaking so casually dressed, her red hair falling off her shoulder, gazing wondrously at the night sky. Ise had to admit to himself that he liked this side of hers too. _Maybe a bit too much._

"Beautiful." He breathed, drawing her attention to himself. He immediately colored and turned his face away.

"What?" She asked him.

"Just that the stars are really beautiful." Ise tried to cover up quickly, hoping that she had not seen his flaming cheeks.

"Umm, nervous about tomorrow?" He asked in a desperate attempt to divert her.

"I am." She sighed. "It's our rating game after all."

"Don't worry too much. We are well prepared." He reassured her.

"Still, even the best made plans…." She trailed off.

"I know. But, worrying won't change anything, will it?"

"No." She gave in.

"Then have faith in us. We'll win." Ise told her. "You should go to sleep. Being restless won't help."

"Hey Ise?"

"Yeah?"

"Mind if I sleep with you tonight?" She looked at him nervously.

"Come again?" He sputtered.

"Just that I'm nervous, you know? I can't sleep, and normally I'd sleep with Akeno or Raynare maybe, but they're both asleep in the same room and there is no space left and I found you awake and…." She stopped herself, her face slowly matching her hair.

Ise looked at her, speechless. After a while, Rias took his silence as a no and deflated.

"I guess it was a bad idea." She said as she nervously played with her hair. "I'll be going then." She hastened to get up, but stopped as she felt his hand grabbing hers.

"Just the night, right?" Ise looked just as nervous.

"Yeah."

"Okay then. But I'm taking the right side." She gave a shy smile at his response.

As they both climbed in bed, Ise began to question his senses. _What was I thinking?_ His nerves were overworking, his heart was beating like it wanted to break out of his rib cage. _Oh God._ He thought as he felt the faint hint of her scent hit his nose. _Rose_ _wood_ _._ He swallowed nervously.

As if the universe couldn't be more cruel, or lucky as a small part in him screamed in joy, Rias slowly pushed over to his side in her sleep, ending up snuggling with him. _Damn Hormones_. He cursed for the umpteenth time.

In order to distract himself from his dangerous thoughts, he began to analyze the plan they came up with. He tried to come up with a flaw of any kind, but he could find none. _It's solid on page, but will it hold?_ He mused as he unknowingly stroked her hair, Rias sighing in response.

 _At least someone's sleeping._ Ise smiled at his friend. _I promise, Rias. I won't let that turkey touch you._

With that thought in his mind, he slowly drifted away.

{} {} {}

"Zeoticus." The spiky blonde haired man acknowledged.

"Viktor." A man nodded his greetings as he walked into the study. He had the appearance of a middle-aged, handsome looking man with long crimson red hair that is tied as a loose ponytail with a black hairband. His blue eyes told of annoyance and concern. Both men had a regal aura about them, which their clothing and aura only accentuated.

"Why?" The blonde asked.

"My eldest." The newcomer sighed.

"Your actions have caused quite the inconvenience for our agreement. And so has your daughter." The blonde sneered.

"I admit that she has. I have told Venelana many times not to spoil her so much, but it seems all my words have gone to waste." The red-haired man gave a disappointed nod.

"My son will win against her pathetic excuse of a peerage. However, this was not involved in our deal."

"That is true." He admitted. "So I wish to amend my side of the bargain."

"Oh? How so, oh Lord Gremory?" The blonde mocked.

"The bride price need not be paid. Instead, I will pay the same if your son manages to humiliate my daughter and take out all her peerage." He paced, as if deep in thought.

"While this agreement was for the benefit of both our houses, I also requested my daughter be treated with care." He stopped pacing. "But it seems that she does not deserve it. Lord Phenex, as per agreement, two pure-blood children was be born of their union. However, I only ask of one that would bear our Gremory blood, and that it be given to our care. Your son may choose to make his own heir through her, or" His lips curled barely in disgust. "The Phenex clan's son may choose purity, literally." The grimace he got in response told how the other man thought of it.

"In that case, I believe my other son will be better suited for our heir. Then, what of your daughter?"

"Once she has fulfilled her purpose, as agreed upon, she and her peerage are your property. Kill the men, use the girls, do whatever you like." He waved his his hand as if it was of no concern.

"Hmm, I have been reminiscing of my youth lately. Good times. War, and women. Lots and lots of young women, crying out in ecstasy as I claimed them. I do believe this offer might help me remember a bit better." He licked his lips in anticipation. "Now I have been a bad host, Lord Gremory. Would you care to remain for some… entertainment?"

"Lead the way."

{} {} {}

"We're leaving? Already?" Raynare's expression echoed Ise's question.

"It's a custom to leave for the game ground an hour ago at least." Rias explained as she held up a paper with a Gremory seal on it. "This way, we get to check the grounds before the game and change our plans if need be."

"Okay." Ise replied as they all held on to a side of the paper, being whisked away with a flash of red.

"Wait a minute." Ise said as he looked out the window. It wasn't really hard to recognize the nondescript buildings, especially the gym area. "We're going fight in the school? Won't that damage the grounds or something?"

"No silly." Akeno answered with a giggle. "This isn't our school." Before Ise could point out the obvious, she took his hand and dragged him to the window and pointed at the sky. "Look."

 _Whoa._ The whole sky looked an angry red, covered with complex circles and whatnot. "What the?" Akeno giggled again at his bewildered expression.

"We never hold rating games in any 'real' areas, as they cause quite a bit of collateral damage. Instead, we create massive 'pockets' within space. That way, these can be repaired and remodeled as needed. Currently, we are occupying one that looks exactly like our school. It's also a lot bigger, which you failed to spot."

"Another advantage my brother provided." Rias supplied. "Alright people, this is it. A month of training, planning and now we're here. We can't lose." Her voice quivered a bit at the last sentence. "We will win."

"Time's a wasting." Raynare said with fake cheer. She felt for her friend, but a somber mood would sour things down only. "Let's fry us some turkey!"

"So, I think we should go with our plan B. We could probably..." Rias stopped as she noticed Ise focused deeply, staring at the wall behind her.

"Something the matter Ise?"

"Huh?"

"I said, is something the matter, Ise?"

He looked at her with a frown on his face. Taking a few deep breaths, he calmed himself and looked around. _It's risky, but I should tell her at any rate._ "Rias, I have an idea. It's crazy and dangerous. But if it works, we can do this fast and end up with a higher chance of victory."

"Well, let's hear it then." Raynare urged. "We don't have much time."

Ise sighed before he began. "Since we are allowed to scout the battlefield and run setup, I say we go with plan B, but with a twist." He looked directly at Raynare. "You said that illusion spells are not that hard to cast, neither is changing one object in another shape, if they have simple goals, right?"

Raynare's eyes went wide with surprise. "You remember that?" Ise gave a barely concealed smirk as a response, then became serious again.

"Well, can we use the materials we find here to make fakes of the 'Holy Mines'?"

"Why?" Akeno couldn't help but ask.

"While our plan was to to set up the mines in bushy areas, our main line of attack" Ise pointed at the window. "Should be the gym area. Sure, we can lure them in, but that's just a possibility."

"What are you saying?" Kiba said, crossing his arms in a show of impatience.

"I'm saying that one of us plants fake copies of these mines, getting seen in the process."

"This will make them wary of invading through the garden area, but not avoid it altogether." Rias deduced. "Risky move Ise."

Ise gave another smirk in response. "Not if Raynare makes them."

"The slight holy aura of her magic will convince them." Akeno had a smirk on her face. "I like it. But can you do it, Raynare?"

"Yes." She confirmed. "And I can ward the area, so if anybody does step in, we'll know."

"But what about the actual ones?" Rias questioned.

"Their other option is direct assault through the gym. And the field. This is where it gets tricky." Ise paced with his eyebrows furrowed.

"We need Kiba for this." He decided, sure of himself. "Alright, here's how we do this. I need someone to hit the gym area..."

About fifteen minutes of conferring with each other, the plan was finalized.

{} {} {}

"It's done." Ise heard Kiba's voice through the magical comm in his left ear.

"Good. Did anyone spot you?" Ise heard Rias ask.

"Several ones, in fact." Kiba responded, sounding a little smug. "I think the two Rooks along with one of his Knights were scouting the area. They hastily backed off."

"Good then." Ise felt worried at how tired Raynare's voice sounded. "Let's hope they are not stupid enough to ignore the hint."

"Just because their master is a dumbass turkey doesn't mean they are too." Ise commented. "Err... Raynare, are you feeling okay?" He had to know.

"I feel a bit worn out, but I'll be fine with the rest I'll get. Let's hope that the modifications were worth it." She responded.

"Oh they'll work all right." Ise could practically feel Akeno smirking. "This plan is crazy Ise, but if this works I'll let you plan all our matches. And don't worry Ise, I'll make sure she recovers."

"Thanks." Ise voiced back. "We sure they don't have a counter in place?"

"They don't." Rias sounded confident. "I have seen all his matches, he prefers a head on strike, or infiltration of the most rudimentary level. And those games he was playing seriously."

"The match is about to start." Kiba warned.

"Hello and welcome all to today's rating game between Riser Phenex and Rias Gremory. I, Grayfia Lucifuge, Queen to Lucifer shall be the arbiter for this game." The clear and icy voice of the Queen boomed over the place. "This game will be a four hour blitz style match. The paws are allowed promote upon reaching the enemy base. May the best King win!" A loud gong sounded afterward.

Ise got in position and mentally prepared himself for what he was about to face. _I'll be heavily outnumbered. At least till Kiba gets here._ He had suggested that Kiba and Koneko secure the gym area first. That left him alone in the field, and much to everybody's protest, he said he would hold the area till Kiba came to help.

"Look who we got here." A sneering female voice sounded from his left. _Ah, guess I don't have to wait long._ Ise thought.

He found a group of five girls approaching him. "Hello. My name is Hyoudou Issei. I'm a Rook. And you?" It was a stupid and totally obvious attempt for information on his part, but Ise hoped it was stupid enough to work.

"Oh lookie here." A tall young woman with long black hair with a dark blue tint and brown eyes sneered in response. "Not only do we have a newbie, it seems this one is an idiot as well." She had a giant sword in slung over her back, making Ise conclude she was a Knight.

"Oh come on Siris! Let the kid have his bit before we chop him down." The woman who chided her fellow Knight was a young woman with light brown hair and green eyes. Her outfit consisted of a full set of silver armor with black accents that appeared to be a cross between a European knight's and a Japanese Samurai to Ise. She also wore a headband that went across her hair and forehead. Ise noted that she had a broadsword and a dagger. _Another Knight then. Lovely._

The Knight strode towards him and gave a little nod. "I am Karlamine. Knight to Riser Phenex. And this lovely lady with the Zweihänder is Siris." Siris rolled her eyes at her words.

"The one with blue hair and the stick is Mira, a Pawn." She continued ignoring the eye rolls and pointed at a girl wearing a kimono. "Mihae, Bishop. And the one with skimpy outfit is Shuriya. She's a Pawn."

Suddenly Siris lunged at Ise with her sword. Ise swerved on his heels and knocked the flat side of the blade away by his palms.

"Enough talk." She said with a mad glint in her eyes. "Time for you to suffer. Cry little Rook, as I hack your flesh from your bones!"

Ise ducked under another strike form Mira, who thrust her stick towards his torso. _Ah well, I squeezed in a few minutes, and I now know what their position are. Now to survive_ _without wasting too much power,_ _till Kiba gets here._

The next few minutes were hell for Ise. He ducked, he dodged, he blocked and he countered, but try as he might, he could not get more than glancing blows on the girls. They were well coordinated if nothing else, and simply kept him on his toes.

Ise began to sweat as he blocked yet another blow from Shuriya, who seemed to be heavily reliant on her fists. Her skills were abysmal, but the constant barrage on him made him block her blows rather than dodge it outright at times. The Knights were nowhere near as fast as Kiba with their heavy swords, but they outnumbered him.

 _Come on, come on damn it!_ Ise cursed as he got gutted in the stomach by Mira, then kicked across the place by Karlamine. He was foolish enough to try and hit the other Knight, only to find that the Bishop had put up a shield.

"Well, little Rook." The girl mocked him as he groaned in pain. "You were surprisingly entertaining, quite skilled even. But now it's time for you to die." She lifted her sword, with full intention to stab him. Ise braced himself, only to hear a voice that made him sigh in relief.

"The gym is hot, I repeat, the gym is hot!" Kiba yelled through the comms.

"Light it up, now!" Rias's command was followed by a massive burst of thunder that shook the area.

"Riser's two Rooks, four Pawns have retired." The announcement left Ise's opponents stunned.

"Oh, look mum, fried chicken!" Came Akeno's gleeful smug voice. Ise couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Queen has been spotted!" Koneko yelled through the comms as Raynare replied back almost instantly.

"Threat has been neutralized." Her voice flooded his senses with relief. _Another goal accomplished._

"What in the Satan's name just happened?" The Knight with the Zweihänder half demanded.

"Go! You're set up." He heard Raynare tell Akeno.

"I'll tell you what happened." All eyes turned to Ise as he stood up in an uncaring manner, his demonic aura rolling off him in waves. "Akeno just blew up the gym." He finished with a smirk on his face.

The girls' faces turned red with fury at his statement. "Bastard! Die!" Siris screamed in anger as she lunged at Ise, only to find her blade stuck between his palms.

"But how?" She asked, surprised.

"I should reintroduce myself." Ise said as he casually kicked her in the gut, pulling the blade away from her then breaking it by kneeing it like it was made of cardboard. "My name is Hyoudou Issei. And I'm your worst nightmare." _Okay not using that line again. Bit too crappy for my taste._ He thought as the others attacked him with trepidation. This time, her didn't hold back.

He expertly dodged a stab from Karlamine, grabbing Mira the Pawn's staff in the process, and tilted it to face the oncoming punch from Shuriya. The result was a sickening crunch. Ise then dropped down low, delivering a crushing uppercut to the Knight. He saw the Bishop trying to put up a shield, but he was too fast.

He ignored the brief pain on his back as Siris had punched him with all her might, but he was a Rook. He continued to pummel whoever made to attack him for the next five minutes or so, shrugging off blows after blows. His punches left his opponents winded, but he had taken quite a bit of damage himself. He could practically feel his torso aching with roaring pain. _Come on Kiba!_

A cry of agony pierced the air, following quick rumbles of thunder.

"Riser's one bishop, retired." The announcement made his opponents stop, their faces paling.

"I'm coming to base." Akeno's voice sounded through the comms, but Ise paid no heed as he saw his target.

"No way!" Mira muttered, too shocked to notice Ise's fist driving towards her, until…

"Riser's one Pawn, retired." The words followed the massive boom she made as she crashed on the ground from his punch. The others just stared at him dumbly, too shocked to move.

"Ise, I'm coming in." Kiba's voice sounded through the comms. "Hang on."

Even a moment before Ise was unsure whether the plan would work or not, but now he felt confident. _And relived._ He realized.

"You know." He said, trying to keep the girls busy. _I can't keep fighting in the next phase if I push on._

"It's your own arrogance that has brought this upon you."

"How did you make Mistress retire?" Siris snapped out of her daze, ignoring his comment.

"You mean Ravel Phenex?" He asked rhetorically. "I think you know." He let the words hang, till he saw realization dawn on their faces.

"The traps! But they can't be not powerful enough!" Karlamine protested.

"Oh they were." Ise replied. "And now you'll know why."

"Ise, move the hell away!" Ise jumped away using a bit of his demonic aura for good measure. And he was wise to do so., for the area was bombarded with remaining modified 'Holy Mines'.

"Argh!" He grimaced at how his opponents lit up and burned at contact, but they were soon put out of their misery by Kiba.

"Sword Birth!" Kiba yelled as he landed on the same spot as Ise.

Hundreds of swords, in many shapes and forms, burst forth from the ground in abundance. They skewered through the girls, forcing them to retire.

"No!" Ise heard Shuriya pant out, before she flashed away in a burst of light. "We can't be defeated."

"Riser's two Knights, two Pawns, and one Bishop has retired." Ise swore that the Ice Queen's voice sounded a bit smug.

"Hey Ise, how's it going?" Kiba asked with a tired smile, but Ise could see the excitement in his eyes.

"Great so far." Ise was about to respond with a smile of his own, but he was thrown off the field with a huge boom.

"Rias' only Knight has retired." Even through his dizziness, Ise felt a sense of pain and dread.

"Kiba!" He heard Rias's voice through the comms.

"You bastard! I'll get you all for this!" Ise forced himself to raise his head to the enraged female voice's source, only for the dread to rise.

There was floating in the air, a busty woman with long, wavy purple hair that fell all the way down her back and matching eyes. She wore a dress consisting of a navy blue tunic top with gold accents and a pale blue skirt with open sides. And she was hacked off, from her furious expression.

 _Yubelluna. Riser's Queen._ Ise realized with a sense of cold fear washing over him. _She was supposed to be knocked off till one more hour!_

As he limped up on his feet, Ise realized he couldn't win. She was completely unharmed, while he had taken a ton of damage. As his adrenaline finally left him, Ise realized the true extent of his damage. In his wish to suppress his demonic power, he had gone on to compensate with a broken left leg, his back and torso burned with pain, he felt dizzy from the explosion. Even if he did try to use his full power right then, he still wouldn't beat the infamous 'Bomb Queen'.

 _I have to stall her._ Ise attempted to make a taunt or ask how she was still awake, till he felt another explosion hit him. He felt himself thrown across the field, and hitting the ground. He felt lifeless and limp, the pain shooting across his body.

"Ise!"

"No!"

"Oh no!" He heard the horrified voice of his three friends through the comms, wanting desperately to help him. But they were too far away and they all knew it. Ise could see his plans crumbling to dust.

 _No! I will not give up because of a setback._ He forced himself to his feet, grinding his teeth together at the blinding pain he felt. _If I go down, then I'm taking her down with me._ He thought as he saw her hovering in the distance.

He took a deep breath. _I have no choice._ Ise relaxed his body, as much as he could, and then put himself in a stance he hoped to never use. _Feet wide apart, crouch low._ His father's voice rang in is ears. _Let the ground harden your resolve._ _Stand tall and unmoving as a mountain in the face of your enemies._

"Come on!" Ise yelled as he stared at the Queen with defiant eyes, his whole being blazing with demonic power. She looked taken aback by his challenge, but she complied with a massive spike of her power. Ise felt tremendous pressure build up around him, ready to explode again. He spiked his own aura in response, standing defiantly.

"Ise, what are you doing? Get away!" He heard Rias attempting to warn him off but he paid her no mind. _I can take this._

The pressure built up to it's peak, and Ise braced himself for the impact. "Die, you son of a" Ise heard Yubelluna say, but she didn't get the chance to finish her sentence.

A small figure crashed her fist on the Queen's back, making her lose her focus and crash to the ground. "Koneko!" Ise couldn't help but utter in surprise at her arrival.

"Go." The little Rook told him without turning her eyes back at him.

"No." While there was no love lost between the two, Ise would not abandon her like a coward.

"Go." This time the Rook glared at him, her eyes softening just a touch as she observed him. "Heal and fight then. You're her only chance at freedom."

"But…." Ise tried to protest, only for her to cut him off. "Make sure to give them hell for me and Kiba, OK?"

Ise glanced at Yubelluna slowly picking herself off the ground behind them. He looked at Koneko again, finding her focused on the opponent. He gave her a tight nod, and turning back, he ran as fast as he could.

"Come on, bitch!" He heard her cuss at the Queen, followed by a loud boom. Ise gritted his teeth and ignored his urge to turn back and help her. _I'll get them for you, Koneko. I promise._

Just as he reached their base, he heard a loud explosion, followed by cries from Akeno and Rias.

"Koneko!" They both cried out in a voice full of despair.

"Rias' one Rook has retired." Ise could swear he heard a hint of sadness in the Ice Queen's tone.

"I promise, I promise that they will pay tenfold." Ise vowed in a quiet tone as he entered the building.

{} {} {}

Akeno bit her lip in worry as she waited for the signal from Kiba. Thanks to Raynare's fallen magic, they could track each of their members individually and even see what thy are doing. Currently, two screens were floating over the room, one focused on the gym and the other on the grounds. Akeno couldn't help feel that the prowess her friend displayed was the reason why the Fallen lasted as long in the war with their small numbers.

Kiba and Koneko were doing fine so far, but she couldn't help but worry as she looked at Ise. That was the only problem about their plan, at least for Akeno.

The bushes around and especially, behind their building or base was cover in fake mines, made by Ise's suggestion. These mines emitted a strong enough holy like aura to make their opponents wary. At the least these weaken them a bit if someone decided to go there anyway. It was a double edged weapon but a better use for the actual mines.

The mines were modified with an impact trigger mechanism by Raynare, again Ise's suggestion. They were shrunk and safe in Kiba's pockets in two batches, waiting to be used.

The plan was simple from there on. Let the enemy see the fake mines being set so they get the warning loud and clear. Kiba and Koneko would hit the gym. They would almost certainly face Ravel Phenex there. Kiba and Koneko would wind them up and lock them down in the gym. Akeno was yanked out of her musings as Kiba's voice sounded in her ears.

"The gym is hot, I repeat, the gym is hot!" Kiba yelled through the comms.

"Light it up, now!" Rias's commanded her.

Akeno closed her eyes, took a deep breath and felt her magic wash over. She reopened her eyes, lit with a blue hue as she spotted her target through the window. She could see Kiba and Koneko run out the gym with her sharper vision as she raised her right hand up to the sky. _This is it._ She felt a tug on her palm, and with a sharp mental command lowered her hand to her front.

A massive sound shook the area as lightning bolts crashed and tore through the gym.

"Riser's two Rooks, four Pawns have retired."

"Oh, look mum, fried chicken!" Akeno couldn't help but say. She could see Ise roll his eyes at her words as the announcement left Ise's opponents stunned, but she could care less.

She had spent a whole month on perfecting her new technique. When she heard their plan needed a long rang hitter, she developed the Lightning Snipe, a move where she would track down a target in her sights, and bring down a massive lightning strike. It was so power consuming that she could only use it once. _Good thing I only have to hit once too, or I'd pass out if I try that again._

"Queen has been spotted!" Koneko yelled through the comms. Akeno saw the Queen hovering near their Rook's location. As she looked to Raynare, she saw that her friend had already activated the sleep spell.

"Threat has been neutralized." She saw the Bomb Queen slowly succumb to deep sleep, not to wake for another hour. Then she felt a wave of the Bishop's magic wash over her, making her invisible.

"Go! You're set up." Raynare told her. She gave her a quick nod of thanks as she left. But not before she could take a peek at Ise's screen.

 _Ise, hold on just a moment longer. Kiba's coming._

{} {} {}

Raynare felt relief wash over her as she released the spell she had been charging up for so long. She quickly worked her magic on Akeno as the Queen turned invisible.

"Go! You're set up." Raynare told her. Akeno gave her a quick nod, and with a quick peek at the screens, she left.

The Bishop couldn't help but feel glad as she knew that she had done her part perfectly. _And if things go the right way, we'll win._ She told herself.

However, worry overtook her as she looked at Ise fighting five against one. While he was outdoing them so far, she didn't think he could hold off much longer, if the hits and bruises were any sign.

"Rias, I'm worried." She told her crimson-haired friend.

"So am I." Rias' concern was clear in her tone. And Raynare felt the same. Ise had taken the most burden of them all. He'd have to fight in two phases, and had to face the greatest numbers.

"Kiba's up." Raynare looked at the screens at Rias' prompting. She saw Akeno strike the already badly damaged Ravel with her lightning. Just as Ravel's flames began to heal her slowly, Kiba leaped over her from behind and threw the first cluster of the modified mines.

The area lit up with bright white light, burning away the very flesh off the girl's skin. Raynare couldn't help but grimace as her creation brought the Bishop to a gruesome end.

"Riser's one bishop, retired." The announcement made Ise's opponents stop, their faces paling.

"I'm coming to base." Akeno's voice sounded through the comms.

Raynare did not get a chance to welcome her friend back as another announcement stunned her in her place.

"Riser's one Pawn, retired." The words followed the massive boom a Pawn made as she crashed on the ground from Ise's punch.

The subtle glow Ise was emitting as he pulled the fist back gave her chills.

 _One single punch. One, punch._

"Oh hell." She heard Rias say, both staring dumbly at the screen.

{} {} {}

Rias saw her right hand hurtle across to Ise's face, only to slow down as and cup his cheek instead as she looked at his eyes.

His eyes, while as resolute as ever, were filled with shame, sadness. Anger even. It took just a look to realize how hurt he was by the choice he had to make. _Koneko made him do it, he'd rather die than turn his back._ She felt ashamed that she even thought he'd do otherwise.

"It was a necessary sacrifice." Her words stunned them all, even Akeno, who had just returned.

"But I could have saved her." Ise argued in a quiet voice.

"And retire from the match?" Rias challenged. When no reply came, she continued.

"Ise, she was one of the weaker members of this peerage. Her retirement allowed you, a stronger piece to continue. I'd say that's a win." She saw Raynare was about to counter her logic, so she held up a hand to stop her.

"We are all resources. We do our jobs, and if that requires we let someone else retire in our place or vice versa, we do it. Even I'm the same. My job is to make sure that I don't retire. The match is lost otherwise." Neither of her friends liked her words, but she saw that they couldn't fault her logic either.

Meanwhile, Raynare already had Twilight Healing working on Ise's injuries. As she saw the final traces of any bruise disappear under the green light, she couldn't help but look at his eyes again.

She involuntarily gulped as she saw the fire in those brown orbs. They promised pain to anyone who dared hurt his friends. "I'll bury them." He actually growled.

"They'll regroup, and head straight for our base." Akeno changed the topic.

"And they have two Pawns to upgrade." Rias realized. _We can't let them reach the base!_

"Marion and Burent." Raynare pointed at the screen, two girls with french maid outfits on. "Not really strong, but with the Queen and their King, they will be trouble."

"They're mine." Ise whispered harshly. "I'll punch through their rib-cages." Rias couldn't help but think he wasn't exaggerating.

"You deal with the Queen." Ise pointed to all three of them. "I'll ambush the Pawns, then play a 1v1 with Riser."

"You're crazy!" Raynare exclaimed.

"Ise, I won't let you risk your ass just because you can, not again. This is my fucking peerage, and I will decide what's best for it's welfare!" Her crass language might have surprised her friends, but Rias stood her ground. _I'm not letting you get hurt with your stupid stunts._ She thought as she glared at her friend.

"Rias, I'm not doing this because I'm trying to pull a stunt. I'm doing this because only I can." Ise sighed. "Besides me, right now only you could stand a chance against him alone. We also have to keep the Queen busy. She's dangerous."

"What then? You can't exactly take Riser down by yourself." She huffed. "Or do you have another 'plan'?" She asked crossing her arms.

"No I can't and, no I don't." He admitted, much to everyone's surprise. _Ise never admits defeat like that._ "But" Ise continued. "I can predict what they might do."

"It'll have to do." Akeno responded with a resigned expression.

{} {} {}

"Well, well, well." Rias could practically feel the arrogance and rage dripping from his voice.

"I am surprised, Rias." The stupid prick was hovering in the air, his right arm draped around his Queen's waist, caressing it in a slow, lazy, lewd manner. It made her want to puke, thinking she was promised to such an asshole. His Pawns were nowhere to be seen. _As we suspected._

"It's still hard to believe that you puny lot managed to take most of pieces down. I'll make sure they are...harshly reprimanded for this farce." He said in a slow, uncaring manner as he loosened his grip on the Queen. "However," His eyes blazed in sudden fury. "You hurt Ravel." His entire right hand was on fire. "You made her cry." Before he could launch it at them, Akeno's words stopped him cold.

"Oh like you do every night? I bet it feels real good, doesn't it? I know I enjoyed every second of it." She purred, licking her left ring finger. _Akeno, what are you doing!_

"Oh she cried alright." Akeno continued. "I think you'll need to tell the docs to check her throat for damages, cause she probably screamed it raw. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to shove your little turkey down her hatch now, would you?"

She could see Riser had reached his limit. His eyes blazed, his whole body shook in fury, fiery wings protruded from his back. His hands caught fire, his muscles were taut like a strung bow's string. And his face. Rias could feel the hatred and rage rolling off his snarling face. But strangely enough, Akeno's words empowered her. The nerves she felt facing an immortal Phenex were gone. Her Queen's words had stripped away the last bit of lore, and revealed a disgusting excuse of a man.

And she would not lose to that filth. _Make him angry, make him lose his mind._

"You think you are big game, Riser? News flash, you're not. You are not invincible. You are not the next Satan. You are just a useless loser with a massive ego, thinking you got it all. You don't. Look around, who many of your 'big' peerage do you see here?" She taunted, making quote gestures with her hands. "How about four?" However before she could finish her tirade, she was stopped by two massive booms, one immediately following the other. And before she could even fathom what just happened, her sister-in-law kindly helped everyone along.

"Riser's two Pawns, retired."

Ise was standing right under Riser's Queen, his right fist still pointing at where the maid Pawn had impacted. As he slowly pulled back, Rias could see no emotions on his face, only blood on his fists and cold fury in his eyes.

 _Let the games begin._

Without preamble, Rias launched herself toward Yubelluna, an orb of her power already forming in her hands. She saw Ise lunge for Riser out of the corner of her eye, but she focused on her target. She saw the Queen prepare an attack, but right at that moment she got zapped hard by Akeno. Yubelluna retorted with a small explosion of her own, hurling debris everywhere. As she momentarily lost track of her enemy, she felt an ominous presence behind her.

"Got you!"

She felt the pressure build behind her back, the explosion was inevitable. _I'm sorry._

"Oh no you don't!" She heard Raynare shout, followed by a burst of her blinding light. Akeno raced towards her and dragged her away.

Raynare had hit her mark dead on. Yubelluna was down prone on the ground, having taken too much damage to even get up. _Good, we might not need Ise's plan after all._ She thought as she and her friends ganged up on her, but the Bomb Queen seemed unfazed by her predicament. She barked a very unladylike laugh as they circled her.

"What are you laughing for?" Akeno prodded her, clearly irritated. She ignored her and continued laughing manically. Rias could feel the air around her change as Riser Queen got up and glared at them.

"You think you're gonna win? You think you've beaten me just cause you've scraped me a little? Then let's turn up the volume and see if you can handle it, shall we?" She smirked as she took out a small red vial from her bosom.

 _Phoenix Tears, Shit!_ "Don't let her drink it." Rias yelled as she hastily attempted to throw an orb to interrupt her but was shoved back several meters by a shockwave the Queen let out.

It took only a few moments for Rias to recover, but by then it was too late. The Bomb Queen smirked at them as she crushed the vial under her foot, her injuries and fatigue completely gone.

 _Shit._ Rias could only swear as she tried think of a way to take her down. As she glanced at her sides, she didn't like what she saw. Raynare looked dead tired, and so did Akeno. _All those mines and lightning strikes came at a heavy cost._ She was the only who was relatively unharmed and fresh. _But I'm too slow._

She risked a peek at Ise's direction and she did not like what she saw. While Ise was not losing any ground against Riser, he was completely unable to attack the coward as he had taken to the air and hauling fireballs at the Rook. _If it keeps going like this, he'll lose._ She felt cold dread wash over her. _Think!_

Suddenly an idea hit her as she remembered their fight with the Fallen. _A good performance deserves a repeat._ She carefully inched closer to Akeno, all the while keeping an eye on her opponent.

"Akeno, I think I have a plan." She tried to whisper.

"Say no more." Akeno whispered back. "I think Raynare's got the same idea." The fallen gave a subtle but resolute nod when they looked at her.

Rias again charged at the Bomb Queen, but this time, she changed her tactics. She came in close and gave out small little bursts of her power, then ducked back away each time Yubelluna attempted to attack her. Skillfully she worked as an ample distraction, and her friends took the chance to get some shots in.

"Enough!" The Bomb Queen yelled in annoyance as she shielded herself from yet another light burst.

She let out another shockwave, this one stronger than the previous one. Dust blew in the air, and before she could even blink, she saw Akeno getting thrown away like a ragdoll.

"Akeno!" She screamed. But her friend did not respond.

Her Queen was lying on the field, taking ragged breaths. _No._ She saw Yubelluna hovering over her with a superior smirk. "Game Over." She stated, hand raised.

She saw Raynare open fire on her with all she had. The Bomb Queen moved away from her barrage, attempting to blast her off with her power. Rias interrupted her with an orb of her own. Yubelluna gracefully moved away from her attack, only to force Raynare to repeatedly shield herself and duck as she was bombarded. Rias attempted to help, but she felt her slow buildup was only hindering.

"Thinking about giving up yet?" She taunted the Bishop.

Rias could clearly see Raynare was exhausted and scraped up. But she still glared back, with a resolve Rias couldn't expect from her softhearted friend.

"No. If I give in, my friend loses her freedom. I can't allow that." With that she engaged the Queen once more, both throwing all they had at the other, thought one knew she would lose.

Rias tried to call her power forth and join in, but they were momentarily stopped as they heard Ise curse loudly, and turned around.

Riser had finally managed to catch Ise unawares with a fireball. Ise was burned in several places, but he was glaring at the smirking Riser with the same intensity.

Rias couldn't help but admit it, she was scared. She was scared that this was all in vain. That she had only managed to get her friends hurt for nothing, and the inevitable was her loss. She felt hopeless.

Raynare was sweating profusely, having almost reached her limit of her power and physical endurance. Yet she launched another barrage without a break, but it was so weak that the Queen carelessly blocked it with a shield.

Rias simply hovered as she stared at her friends, frozen. She felt useless as she watched them fight. _For me. And all I did was just bark orders and try to look important._

She felt something primal rise inside her, an animalistic urge to fight back, no decimate her opponents. _I'll take mine, no our freedom. Even if it costs me my life, I will not die in submission._ And much to her surprise, she felt her power respond. For the first time in her life, Rias felt as if her power had come alive. _Just like brother said._

By then, Yubelluna had the exhausted Raynare cornered. She smirked and pointed at the Bishop. _Not while I'm here._ Rias zoomed in right beside her friend, and feeling the pressure build around them, she called upon her own power of destruction.

She felt it immediately come alive in her palm, and she threw the hungry, dark blood red sphere at her enemy.

Yubelluna may not have been considered a veteran by any, but even she could not ignore her instincts screaming at her. She hurriedly dodged to her left, moving away from one of the King's spheres. And she was glad she did, for the moment it impacted, she was thrown away by the blast.

 _Shit, I missed._ Rias cursed. The Queen may have been knocked off-balance, but she was only disoriented in essence. Rias called upon her power again, only to have a vicious burst of lightning slam upon her target. Eyes wide, she looked back.

"Akeno?" Her Queen was barely standing, with a sad smile on her lips.

"I'm sorry, Rias. That's all I can do for now." With that, she fell into a heap, and in a flash of light, disappeared.

"Rias' Queen, retired." The icy voice sounded a bit worried now.

 _No. I will not submit to my emotions. Not now._ Rias wiped at her eyes, and focused on her power. Yubelluna was heavily damaged, and Raynare gave her a look as she hovered over her. On the other hand, Ise was not doing so well.

The initial hit from Riser had burnt Ise bad enough to restrict his movements. He was barely moving away from each of Riser's shots, helpless to against hit flying target as there were no footholds or climbs nearby. Yet he was stubborn enough to not give up, to buy her more time.

Rias decided to take a risk. _Get ready._ She gave a look in his direction, and received an almost imperceptible nod in return. She conjured yet another of her spheres, albeit a feeble one, and aimed for Riser.

As anticipated, Riser ducked down to the ground as her shot passed him by, only to be gutted by Ise.

"Now!" She heard him say as he jumped back.

Mustering up her reserves, she summoned multiple spheres this time, and launched them at the dazed Phenex. She prayed for the announcement, as dust covered her view. None came.

"Fuck you!" Riser came out of the dust missing his left arm, completely obliterated by her power. But like she feared, he was slowly but surely healing. His wound was dripping blood, but at the same time it was slowly sealing off the skin. It was a truly grotesque sight.

 _We can't let him heal._ Rias thought as she watched him. Ise must have had the same idea, as he charged at Riser alongside her, only to have Raynare slammed at them.

"Umph" She heard Ise grunt as they landed in a heap. Raynare looked she had been through the ringer, bruises and deep cuts here and there.

"Sorry. She surprised me." She apologized between struggled breaths.

"Persistent bitch. Thought she could keep me down." To her horror, Yubelluna joined Riser. She had scorch marks all over her body, and a large gash ran through her right arm. _Looks like Raynare did a number on her as well._

She saw the Queen fuss over Riser's injury as they got up. "Riser-sama! Do you need to be healed?" She inquired, completely ignoring the trio.

"Shut the fuck up, idiot!" Riser yelled. "Useless piece of shit, can't you see that my arm's already back? Never mind that, tell me why the fuck are you not doing your job?"

"Riser-sama?"

"Don't, you bitch! Why are they still here? Why have I lost my pieces? Why has my sister retired? Answer me!" He ranted as he pointed his slowly healing stump, now almost an arm at them.

Yubelluna recoiled, obviously hurt by his words. "But Riser-sama! I tried my best." She weakly protested.

"Shut up! If your best is getting whacked around by thses pieces of shits, letting my sister get hurt while all you do is whine about your inabilities, then you are nothing but a waste." He fumed.

"I will win this match." He shoved her. "I'll fucking win this match, and then I'll see to it that you get traded with at least a capable Queen piece."

Rias couldn't believe what she was hearing. _Where were you when she was fending us off from you?_ And trading a member off like that? Rias felt sickened by him before, but now she really wanted nothing to do with the bastard now.

Rias prepared to defend herself as she saw Ise gently lower the battered form of Raynare to the ground. Riser approached them with a sneer on his face, flames erupting from his hands.

"I order you as your master to do everything in your power" He leered at them "to defeat my enemies. They are not worth my time." Rias was shocked. _He just didn't._

"Riser-sama." The girl's tone was so cold that everyone stopped.

"I will obey." Tears were falling down the Bomb Queen's cheeks, yet her eyes held a resigned resolve in them.

Something in her tone was alarming, and Riser backed off.

"You." She calmly pointed at Rias. "You have made my master look down on me. You made me lose my charge. But most importantly,"

"you hurt him." Her eyes flashed dangerously.

Rias' eyes widened as she felt the air around her getting heavier. "Fall back." She yelled, much to the Bomb Queen's mirth.

"You think you can avoid this?" She laughed as the pressure continued to build. "There is no escape this time, Rias Gremory. The blast zone far outreaches the edges of this whole battlefield. Oh yes." She smirked at her horrified expression. "Time to go out with a bang."

Rias thought of pressing an attack, however, the Bomb Queen appeared unfazed. She even had the gall to tut them, which unnerved her.

"If you attack me now Rias Gremory, all you will achieve is setting off the attack early. Not quite powerful enough to kill you or make you fall, but enough that my master may only need a shot."

"But wait, doesn't that mean you'll get caught up in it too?" Raynare asked from her side. It was a pompous Riser who answered.

"So? I will be standing, and that's what matters."

 _She'll take the full brunt of the blast. Fuck, she is gonna blow. Oh, no._ It seemed that the Queen had already resigned herself to her fate. _And he dares to smile._

"You fucking monster! You would let your Queen blow herself up so you can win a match? How insane can you be!" She looked at him, incredulous. And she found a child cackling with glee.

"Come on Rias, it not like she will not survive, even if barely. She was a wasteful investment. At least, this way she gets to add faithful to her resume, even if I had to order her. Besides, if she dies, all the better. I do not even have to trade. Why, I can hunt down another Queen, one far more fitting." He mused aloud.

She couldn't believe it. _All this time, I have seen Riser as the main opponent, one so powerful that he would only_ _bother to_ _let his Queen loose to win his_ _toughest_ _matches. One that might be so devious that I would have to watch out every step of the way. And now I find that the man I expected never was there. After all my preparations, all our hard work and plans, we face a child who raves and rants for he could not have his favorite toy._ _But..._

" _A king that not die can not lose the game."_ Raynare's past comment stung her. _"No matter how weak or strong he is."_

"Raynare." She heard Ise whisper. The Bishop's eyelids slowly fluttered.

"I need you to drop it on my command, okay?" Ise told her softly, much to Rias' confusion.

"What are you talking about?" Rias harshly whispered.

"Remember the mines? Well, we had a bit left over. So I told her to store it." He replied. "For when things go off the tracks."

 _Holy water._ Rias suddenly understood.

As she looked at Ise, everything became clear as day.

 _No._

He just had that look on his face. _Like the Queen, but so different._ She stupidly stood there as she watched Raynare plead him with her eyes. She just looked on as he glared her to submission.

"Time's up." The Bomb Queen announced. She saw Riser take to the air to minimize the damage he would receive. She felt herself getting yanked back by Raynare, yet she couldn't snap out of her funk.

She watched as Ise stood in front of them, like a bulwark. The air felt almost constraining now. But he stood there, unmoving. Just before the Queen unleashed her blast, a voice startled her into action.

 **[Sacred Bull, Last Stand!]**

Golden glow surrounded Ise as he took in all of the blast. "Now!" His yell was filled with agony, and determination.

Raynare only had a moment to summon a seal directly over Riser's head, pouring holy water over the Phenex, preventing him from healing.

 **[Fade!]**

Ise rocketed at Riser, his right fist connecting to his face with such explosive force that he made a crater as he impacted on the ground.

Rias did not hear the three announcements made in rapid succession. The only sounds she had ears for right then were the sounds of Riser's agony.

She launched a sphere at the enemy with all of her force. Normally she had been advised to not do it. But Riser could not be left to chance.

A huge red, angry sphere of her make shot forwards, slowly engulfing the Phenex.

"Riser Phenex has been forcefully retired. Rias Gremory wins." This time Rias swore she could hear the Ice Queen's relief and worry.

"We won." Rias could only whisper as she fell.

{} {} {}

"Viktor."

"He would have died." The Phenex Lord stated.

"You lie." The other Lord roared. "You have shrugged off such annoyance in battle too many times."

"As have you." He admitted. "But we are not our children. And your daughter is not so weak as you made her appear."

"But." The red haired Lord was interrupted before he could have his say.

"No buts, Zeoticus. Our deal is closed." As he made to go, his hand was caught in an iron grip.

"You cannot abandon the beneficial relationship between our two Clans like this."

"Clan Phenex will maintain it's relations with Clan Gremory." Viktor Phenex looked him hard in the eye as he sneered. "Not with you."

"Perhaps," He said as he shook his hand off from the grip. "It is time for the young to decide the future, don't you think? Your daughter seems capable of it as well. Young she may be, but her power and resolve far outreach her peers. I will make sure to recommend her peerage."

"You traitor!" Zeoticus Gremory yelled, his fist clenched white in rage.

"I am a devil, dear old friend. As are you." With a nod, the Phenex Lord left.

{} {} {}

"She won." a tall, bald man stated as he stared at the screen, scratching his goatee.

"I expected as much." The man looked much like a male version of Rias in his early 20's, with shoulder length crimson red hair and blue-green eyes.

"You are disappointed." The other observed.

"I am." Sirzechs Lucifer stated, looking at the screen. "I expected my sister to lead."

"Thinking of removing the boy, Sirzechs?"

"No, Falbium. I am grateful to the him, if nothing else. Rias was not strong enough for this match, and without him, the conclusion would have been the obvious."

"But you are afraid Rias might not grow under his shadow."

"True." He admitted. "He has the spirit and nobility of a warrior, and would guard Rias with his life."

"He does have potential." The army leader mused. "I suppose I can take him in."

"I do not want to separate them, any of them. They will form a family in time, one that I found in mine." Sirzechs denied.

"If the boy is not given a different path to walk on, then he will fall under your sister's shadow. The bond you talk about would disappear, and he would be a mere footnote in history."

"You wish to give him a chance." the Lucifer realized. "You see yourself in him."

"One I was not given. But I had an advantage. He needs all he can get." the army general stated a bit coldly.

"I'm sorry for saying that." Sirzechs raised his hands in surrender. "If you believe it is a good decision, then I will allow it. You are the greatest tactician after all."

"The chaos I will raise with him…." Falbium smirked.

"The old ones would be outraged I am sure." Sirzechs agreed, with a smile on his face.

"Best go see your sister."

With a nod, Sirzechs Lucifer departed.

{} {} {}

"Ugh, what happened?" Her head felt like it was filled with lead, and body starved for a year. The smell of cleaners and chemicals filled her nostrils. _I hate hospitals._

"You won." Her brother's kind voice even seemed to grate on her ears. She grimaced as she tried to open her eyes, only to see the world blur.

"You used up all your power, despite my warning." He chuckled as he handed her a pill.

"I had to make sure he stays down." Rias made a face as the bitterness of the medicine filled her throat.

"It was quite the view you gave us though."

"What about Raynare, Akeno? Ise, he took the whole blast! Are they alright? Are they okay?" She blabbered as the medicine cleared her mind, fussing with the bed sheet.

"They are healing and are fine." Her brother placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "Raynare and Akeno have been put to sleep till they heal up completely. Kiba and Koneko are the same. Ise took the most damage." Here she tried to get up again, but his hand prevented it. "But he is under treatment, and will heal within next week. His mother has been notified by a letter that he will return a week later than planned. You can visit them tomorrow."

"What about Riser's Queen?" She asked. _Please do not let her die._

"I'm sorry." He said in a grave tone. "She gave her all into it, and she was the center point herself. She was already gone by the time she arrived here."

"I see." Her body gave in, leaning back onto the pillows.

"Riser will have to face heavy consequences." She simply nodded. _It would not bring her back._

"You do not look happy." He observed.

"There is nothing to be happy for." If her brother was surprised, he hid it behind a smile.

"You are free to do with your life as you please." He told her.

"No. Only free from this contract so father can sign another."

"It would not happen, but not for his lack of trying." He did not elaborate, but Rias could guess her brother would make sure of it.

"Still, it came at a price I never wanted to pay." She argued.

"Watching your friends get hurt is for your sake is a painful thing. Trust me, I know." Her brother peered at her. "But that is only half the reason."

"They gave their all, yet I stood still." Rias looked down at her lap. "I had to be handed out the last shot with their utmost effort. Add a few changes, then I would not have been needed at all." _I was worthless._

"Then from the next matches, you will take your own victories." He spoke in a serious tone. "The best way to live your life is to face your problems head and stand strong against everything, so that only you and all you care about remain."

"Yes." He continued, see her expression. "You have been recommended for the low level Rating Games, despite you age or number of peerage members. Many were watching, and they were impressed."

"But I am not as strong as you are." She weakly protested.

"I saw the match, you know." He ignored her words. "You felt it, your power."

"I did."

"Good, learn to feel it and bend it o your will." He commented. "And stop trying to follow me."

"Huh?" She asked, confused.

"We share the same blood, but you are not me. You can never be me. Neither can I be you. So, carve out your own path. Find how your power best responds to your will, and direct it that way." He spoke as he rose.

"I'm afraid I must leave." He gave her a kind smile. "I'll see you tomorrow, Ria-tan." She pouted as he messed up her hair.

 _My power, huh?_ She looked at her hands as she pondered. _Wait._ She groaned.

"He's gonna grill me about Ise tomorrow, isn't he?"

* * *

Character List

Viktor Phenex (The head of the Pillar/Clan Phenex, father of Riser Phenex. A veteran of the war, he is a crafty, greedy man who would go to any lengths to ensure his profit. Yes, I could not find his first name anywhere.)

Zeoticus Gremory (Head of Gremory clan, father to Sirzechs Lucifer and Rias Gremory. A war veteran who is devoted to the old ways, and a heartless and a cruel man.)

Falbium Asmodeus (One of the Great Four Satans, and General to the current devil army. Also known as the best tactician among devils. Formerly of the clan Glasya **-** Labolas **,** he was ousted for his desire to walk a different path than of his family's choice. After the war it was due to his effort that the army completely rebuilt itself. He is the most respected devil of the four.)

 **This is the 38th time I have rewritten this chapter. And I still do not like it. I guess this is not how you expected the Riser fight to go.**

 **I guess this is what one calls a 'writer's block'. No matter how much you try, if the story refuses to be written, then your mind will be blank, and your pages empty.**

 **I have brought some changes to a few characters, as you can clearly see. I plan to turn them into major players in the story, their actions having greater impact than on the anime.**

 **About this chapter. While I might not like it much myself, I do believe writing the last bit this way the better option. It was Rias' struggle, and should be seen from her eyes.**

 **And to answer two specific reviews. To Sandman001, really? Trying logic in an anime where God is dead? If God can DIE, then he can also be a fan of cartoons. And if you start applying 'reason' in the anime even, the whole damn thing will fall apart. If you want logic and reason, your welcome to read my textbooks. Might as well go study.**

 **DeadMenPlaying, close. But not how you think.**

 **And to the other reviewers, I do read them. But I don't think I can answer them right now. I can't because I am not certain if I will use Gasper or not, or when Ddraig will make an appearance, so on. As the story goes, I will find out, just one chapter before you guys do.**

 **Sorry will not cover this long period of absence, so I will thank you all who had the patience to put up with me so far.**

 **Perhaps the next chapter will not take so much time. Till then…**

 **Love it or hate it, let me know. Review!**


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